Already Taken: A Spashley Story
by hollymarie4
Summary: Spencer and Aiden have been together for almost four years and as far as she knows he's the guy that she wants to marry. It's Senior year and a lot things are changing including the feelings she has for him and the feelings she getting for someone else.
1. Prologue

**Already Taken**

**Prologue**

I am currently standing at a bus stop in the middle of nowhere.

Well, somewhere, but nowhere in particular.

I'm not even really sure how I ended up here.

How did everything get so messed up? How did I allow myself to feel and do things that I never in a million years thought I would.

Nothing ever really goes how we plan them and I realize that but I never in my life imagined things would get so messed up.

Never in a million years...

I had the perfect life, so to speak.

I had the guy, the family, the group of friends, the popularity - but somehow I felt something was missing.

I didn't know what that something was-at the time and I didn't know how bad I needed it.

That was until I found it, or it found me rather.

It's funny how things work out sometimes. You think that you're on top of the world then one little thing drags you down to the depths of the earth and buries you alive.

At least that's how you feel.

You're probably confused right? Wondering what the heck I'm talking about... It's a long story so, why don't I just start from the beginning...


	2. Chapter 1 A New Year

**Chapter 1**

"Spencer hurry up or you're gonna be late for school!" My mom yelled up the steps just as I finished my hair. I gave myself a once over in the mirror before bolting out the bathroom, grabbing my bag off the bed and running down the steps. "Here." My mom said handing me a hundred dollar bill. "For the week." She smiled and kissed me on my forehead.

"Thanks mom." I said then jetted out the door toward Aiden's 2011 Dodge Magnum. I heard my mom yell a 'Don't forget to get some breakfast, it's the most important meal of the day!,' before I hoped into Aiden's car.

"Hey baby." He greeted me with a kiss.

"Hey." I smiled as he put the car in drive and we headed to school. We stopped at Mcdonalds on the way to get breakfast cause there was no way in hell I was eating breakfast from the cafeteria. Or lunch for that matter. Thank God I was a Senior this year so I could leave campus for lunch.

"I'll meet you at lunch, okay baby?" Aiden kissed me again as we walked up to my classroom door. He was a gentleman like that. He walked me to class, opened doors for me, pulled out my chair for me, anything you could think of sweet - Aiden was the type of guy to do it.

"Kay." I hugged him and made my way into my classroom and took the empty seat next to my best friend Madison.

"What's up chick? How was your summer?" She asked me, turning and looking at me like she was waiting for me to tell her the juiciest news ever. See, what Madison was waiting for was for me to tell her that Aiden and I had finally took that next step in our relationship - you know the one, the step everyone expects you to take if you've been with someone for longer than a month. Well, Aiden and I have been together since freshman year and it was finally supposed to happen one day over the summer but it never did.

"It didn't happen Madi." I tell her. She looks more disappointed then Aiden did.

"What? Why not? I thought you were ready?" She questions. And honestly, I thought I was to. Until it came time to do it and I freaked out and told Aiden that I wanted to wait.

"I wasn't ready." I tell my best friend truthfully and she understands that I don't want to talk about it anymore so she changes the subject.

"So are you excited chica? We're Seniors now. We run this place!" Madison yelled excitedly. I'll admit, I'm glad to be a senior cause that means I'm almost done with this place, I get to eat off campus and everyone in the school looks up to us, but no one and I mean no one, is more excited then Madison.

"Yeah, sure." I say laughing at my best friends' antics. "Some more than others." I mumble still giggling at Madison, who was now bouncing up and down in her desk like a kid about to get a treat.

"Hey bitches." Our friend Carmen comes in and sits behind us. "How was summer?" She asked looking directly at me. Seriously?

"It didn't happen." Madison buts in. "And she doesn't wanna talk about it." Ugh, thank you Mads. Carmen puts her hands up defensively and we all burst out laughing. Oh how I've missed my friends. We spent the entire summer away from each other. Madison in Puerto Rico visiting family, Carmen in Mexico and me right here in good ol' Los Angeles with Aiden.

Not that I'm complaining. I had a great time with Aiden this summer, spending endless days and nights watching him surf, going to the movies, bowling, and a bunch of other relationship type things - but it would have been nice to get away is all I'm saying.

"Okay class, settle down. I'm Mr. Fitz" The teacher says, as he entered the classroom. I hate the first day of school. The introductions and all. As seniors, I think that we should be allowed to not introduce ourselves. If these teachers don't know us by now then I say that's just too bad. "We're gonna start today off by having everyone come to the front of the class and introduce themselves." See what I mean? "You all might be acquainted with one another but this is my first year teaching here so if you wouldn't mind..." He trailed off. Everyone looked around the room at each other, I guess no one wanting to go first. Pussies. I get up and walk to the front of the room.

"Hey, I'm Spencer Carlin." I turn and look at the teacher, not really sure what exactly he wanted to know about each of us.

"Age, where you were born, dreams and hopes?" He questions.

"Okay well, as I said. I'm Spencer Carlin, I'm 17 I'll be 18 in two months, I was born in Ohio but we moved to California like forever ago, I think I was like two or something. Anyways, after I graduate this place I wanna go to NYU for photography and I really hope that I won't have to do this again in the rest of my classes." That last line getting a laugh from the class.

"Thank you, Mrs. Carlin." The teacher smiled as I took my seat. "Who's next?" He asked and that was how my first period went. Well that's really how the rest of my day went. Thank God it's finally lunch time.

Madison, Carmen, Aiden, a bunch of his jock friends and I, went to Wendy's off campus for lunch. Trust me, anything is better than the cafeteria food at King high. After Wendys we headed back to school to finish out the boring day, which is so pointless cause all we're doing is introductions then free time once the introductions are done.

I'm sitting in my last class of the day, doodling in my notebook, not listening to the people as they go up and introduce themselves. Madison, Aiden and I all had the same last period which was gonna be great this year. This is actually the first class that Aiden and I have ever had together.

"I'm Ashley Davies." I hear a raspy voice say and I can't help but lift my head to see the person this voice came from. I've never heard of an Ashley Davies, trust me, I know everyone at this school. "I'm new here." She continues. See, told you, I know everyone. "I'm originally from San Diego, we moved here a week ago for my dads job." She finishes nervously.

"What do you want to do once you graduate Ashley?" Mrs. Randson asked.

"Oh," She said a little louder then necessary. "I'm actually a junior, but I wanna be a music producer and own my own record label." She said smiling at the teacher. A junior? What's she doing in Senior Lit? I asked myself as she took her seat in the front of the class.

"New girls hot." Aiden leaned over and whispered to me. Oh, yeah him and I are cool like that. I don't mind him thinking other girls are hot or him flirting and he feels the same, as long as there's no cheating involved. Is that normal?

The bell rings and everyone starts to file out of the classroom. I watch the new girl aka Ashley gather her things and head towards the door with everyone else. I don't know what it is about this girl but I feel like I need to get to know her better.

* * *

><p>After school, Aiden, Carmen, Madison and I came back to my house. Madison is sitting on the floor, Aiden and I are cuddling on my bed.<p>

"Ugh, I was so over introducing myself today." Carmen says coming out of my bathroom.

"I know. If I had to do it one more time, I was gonna shoot myself." Madison chimes in.

"My Lit class so full of underclassmen. It was horrible." Carmen said flopping down on my bed.

"Well you shouldn't have failed 10th grade Lit Carm, then you wouldn't be in a class with a bunch of babies." I joke and she throws a pillow at me missing me and hitting Aiden.

"Ow." Aiden shrieks when the pillow hits him in the face. He can be such a girl sometimes. "What the hell Carm?" He asks, sitting up.

"Oh don't be such a chick Aiden. It was a P I L L O W." Carmen stretches out the word. "Soft and fluffy." She adds. We all laugh but Aiden didn't think it was funny. He pouts and I kiss him to make it all better.

"Yeah, whatever." He gives Carmen the finger. "I gotta go baby. Gotta help my dad clean out the garage." He says kissing me and getting up from the bed.

"Boo." Now I'm the one pouting.

"Don't be like that. I'll call you later. Maybe I can come by when I'm done."

"K." I smile and he kisses me again.

"Oh my God, get a room" Carmen says, sticking her finger in her mouth making a gagging gesture.

"This is _my_ room bitch. You could always leave." I retort, getting a laugh from Madison.

Carmen gives me the finger and we both giggle.

"I love you baby." Aiden says walking towards my door. "You girls have fun. But not _too_ much fun. Unless you take pictures." He throws over his shoulder as he leaves.

"You're such a perv Aid." Madison yells after him.

"Speaking of helping. I think I'm gonna go help myself to some food in your fridge, Spence." Carmen says getting off the bed. I shake my head at her but we all follow her down to the kitchen.

"Did you guys hear? We have a celebrity's daughter at our school." Carmen says, opening the fridge and taking out stuff to make a sandwhich.

"Make me one bitch." Madison says as she goes into the living room and turns on the T.V.

"No, who?" I ask, helping her make the sandwhiches.

"I don't know. I didn't get her name I just heard that her dad is some music producer big shot or something." I immediately think of Ashley and how she said she wanted to be one, once she graduated. It was something about her that was different to me, something that made me want to get to know her.

"Oh." I say, taking a bite of my sandwhich. I don't know what it was about this girl but I knew that I needed to get the know her. I follow Carmen into the living room, joining Madison on the couch and the rest of the day I can't shake this feeling I have about Ashley.

This is all normal, right?


	3. Chapter 2 What Just Happened

**Chapter 2**

The next day at school I found myself wishing the day would go by faster but not so school could be over like usual. I found myself wanting last period to come quicker and I hate literature.

"Why are you so anxious?" Madison asked, nodding her head at my knee which was bouncing up and down uncontrollably.

"I don't know." I tell her honestly. I've been like this all day, and I really have no clue why besides the fact that I want last period to get here already. Okay, so maybe I do know.

"You're weird." My best friend tells me then pretends to listen to the teacher. I say pretend because Madison has never once listened to a lecture in class. She always and I mean always copies my notes later. And she's an A,B student. I mentally shake my head at that.

* * *

><p>On our way to the parking lot to go get lunch I could see Ashley getting into her car. 'She's a junior not a senior. How does she get to leave campus at lunch?' I think to myself.<p>

"Who?" Aiden turns and looks at me.

"Huh?" I say looking up at him. Oh, did I say that out loud?

"You said that someone was a jun-"

"Oh, no one." I cut him off. I don't know why I'm even worried about what she's doing. I shake the thoughts out of my head and go have lunch with my boyfriend and friends.

After lunch the rest of the day went by pretty fast and it was time for last period. I hurriedly made my way into class and took the seat behind the one that Ashley had sat in yesterday. Madison gave me a 'what the hell?' look then took the seat next to me. We normally sit in the back of the class so we can talk, hence the look she's giving me right now. Aiden got transferred to a different class because football season was starting soon so they had to switch his schedule up so last period would be a class that he could miss from time to time. Football players have it so good. He now has gym last period, so basically he now has a free period.

As the rest of the class files in everyone takes the seats they had yesterday except for the boys that were sitting in the seats now being occupied by me and my best friend. They didn't dare ask us to move, they know who my boyfriend is aka captain of the varsity basketball and football team. Nah, they wouldn't dare, that's social suicide. They take the seats that Maddy and I sat in yesterday.

I watch them as they sit down and as I turn around I realize Ashley had already come into class and taken her seat.

"Shit." I mumbled, getting a look from Madison and the teacher. Oops, guess I said that a little louder than I intended. I needed a reason to talk to her. A reason to get to know her. I didn't know how I would come up with that reason yet, though.

"Okay class, take out your literature books and turn to page seven. Read the short story on your own and then we'll discuss it as a class." Mrs. Randson instructed. We all did as we were told. "So what do you all think the main theme of this story was?" Mrs. Randson questions the class, looking around for volunteers to answer the question. Ashley raises her hand.

"I think it was about loving someone that you know you can't have and the pain of dealing with such love." She answers.

"That's g-"

"I think it's about falling for the wrong person. Not necessarily someone you can't have, just the wrong person all together." I interrupt the teacher. The whole class turns and looks at me, including Ashley. "Sometimes we feel things for people, things we shouldn't feel, things we want to deny but no matter how hard we try we can't and that's where the pain comes in." I finish.

"So, do believe in soul-mates?" Ashley asks me.

"Yeah, I do actually." I answer. Ashley smiles.

"Me too." She says, and I smile back.

We must have been staring at each other for a while.

"Good discussion ladies." The teacher says and breaks our staring match. Ashley turns back around in her seat. "Okay, everyone turn to chapter two, I'm going to be assigning parts for everyone to read in the play, but I will be taking volunteers first so read up a little bit on each character and then tell me who you'd like to play." She instructs up.

"What was that?" Madison leans over and whispers to me.

"What?" I ask innocently. "We were just talking about the poem." I tell her.

"Yeah and then you had a staring contest for thirty minutes." Madison is always reading into things, I swear.

"Nothing Madison, it was nothing." I whisper back, then focus my attention on my Lit book, hoping Madison would drop it. Thankfully she did. The rest of class was actually quite fun. We got our parts for the play, that Mrs. Randson is thinking about making the school's Fall Production. Thankfully, I'm not a lead character. The bell rang signaling the end of class.

"I'll meet you in the parking lot, I need to put these books in my locker." I tell Madison as we pack up our things.

"Can you ride with Aiden today? I gotta get my little sister and her friends from soccer practice in like an hour and you know how you like to lollygag."

"Yeah." I tell her and whip out my phone to text Aiden to let him know I needed a ride.

"I'll see you tomorrow." Madison hugs me and walks off in the direction of the parking lot. I head to my locker, I throw my books in and shut it.

"Shit!" I yell at the person who just scared the fuck outta me.

"Sorry." She smiles. "I didn't mean to scare you." Ashley was leaning against the locker next to mine.

"Well you did." I say holding my chest. She really did scare me. She shouldn't just sneak up on people like that. "You really shouldn't sneak up on people, that's how you get shot." I joke as I whip out my phone to look at the text I just received.

_Can't today babe. I have football tryouts, I'm the captain I have to be there. I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you though, I promise. :)_

"Great." I mumble as I close my sidekick 4G.

"What's wrong?" Ashley asks me as we make our way to the parking lot. I look around to see if Madison had left yet, I really didn't wanna call my mom to come get me. I really need to hurry and get my car back.

"Oh nothing, just I was supposed to get a ride home from my best friend but she bailed on me so I asked my boyfriend and he can't do it because of football practice so it looks like I have to call my mom to come get me which is so embarrassing, as a senior." I laugh at myself. I don't think I breathed one time during that rant.

"Oh." She said simply and looked in the direction of a Black Porsche. "I could give you a ride home, you know, if you wanted me to. I mean, I totally get if you don't cause you don't know me and you know what your mom always says, don't get in the car with people you don't know, so I get it if you don't want a ride." She says hurriedly and all I can do is laugh.

"Are you done?" I ask, still laughing at her.

"Yeah." She smiles.

"Okay, good. And I would love a ride. Thanks." I say as I pull her towards her car. She unlocks the doors and we get in. "Nice car."

"Thanks, it's my dads actually but he lets me drive it to school and stuff. He has plenty." She smiles as we pull out of the parking lot.

Now's my chance to get to know her...


	4. Chapter 3 Awkward Situations

**Chapter 3**

"So.." I start, not really sure what to say. "Um, you're new here." Wow Spencer, real smooth. I mentally slap myself, this is so unlike me.

Ashley giggles before answering. "Yeah. We just moved here last week." Aw. She has _the _cutest laugh I ever heard. I did _not_ just think that. Moving on.

"Make a right up here." I say pointing to the street she needed to turn on. "How are you liking LA so far?" I ask, trying to make conversation. Why does this feel so freaking awkward? I'm usually so much better at this.

"It's so different then San Diego, a lot livelier. And the people are definitely hotter." She looks over at me and smiles. My cheeks burned.

I swallowed the lump in my throat before saying. "Yeah, the guys are pretty hot here. It's the house up here on the left." She pulls into my drives and puts her car in park.

"So Spencer." She says looking at me. "Can I call you sometime? You know, to talk..." She trails off, letting her question linger in the air.

I don't know why the look she's giving me right now caused my cheeks to turn a bright shade of red. I looked away, not wanting her to see.

"Um, sure." I say, taking the phone out of her hand and storing my number in it. Why did that just feel so wrong?

"Okay. I'll talk to you later then _Spencer_." She said my name some type of way and it made my heart flutter. I quickly get out of her car and practically run into the house. I shut the door behind me and lean against it for support, I felt like my legs couldn't hold me up.

"What are you doing?" I open my eyes and see my brother standing in front of me.

"Nothing whore bag. What are you doing here?" I ask, finally regaining my confidence that my legs could support me. I walk into the kitchen to make a snack.

"Dad and I are going to the baseball game today." He said following me into the kitchen. "Who was that, that dropped you off. His wheels are sick. Did Aiden get a new car?"

"No slut. That was Ashley." I said like he'd know who I was talking about. Glen was three years older than me. A junior in college with average grades and a genitalia that didn't like to stay in his pants. Hence the nicknames. He lives on campus, thank God, so I barely see him, again I'm mentally thanking God.

"Oh, Oooookay." He said sitting down a bar stool while I help myself to the leftover Chinese take-out from last night. Wait for it... waiiit for it... "Is she hot?" There it is.

"She's a Junior, man whore. Which means she's underage, which translates to off limits. Got it?" I say a little more abrasive than intended.

"Geez, yeah." He throws his hands up in defense. "Just asking was she hot." He shakes his head at me then makes his way into the living room.

* * *

><p>That night as I'm doing homework... (Yes, we have homework on the second day. I know right! Who gives homework on the second day of school?) Ashley calls me. I was hesitant to answer at first but I pick it up.<p>

"Hello." I answer.

"Hey. It's me Ashley." She says and I can hear the smile in her voice.

"I know." I giggle.

"Oh." She giggles too. "So what you doing?"

"Homework." I say closing my Math book. I was over it at the moment.

"Oh fun." She says sarcastically making me laugh.

"Oh shut it." I joke. "Don't you have any?" I ask getting up from my computer desk and laying down on the bed.

"Nope. Well technically I did, but I did it all in class so..." she trails off.

"That kinda defeats the purpose of it being homework then, doesn't it." I smile and she laughs.

"I can't help it that I'm a genius. You should get like me then maybe you won't be wasting your evenings sitting at home doing homework." She has a good point.

"Okay genius. Why don't you come over and do my homework then I'll be free to do whatever." I spit out before realizing what I was saying.

The line went quiet.

"Um... nah." She laughs. "I'll let you take care of that. My dad and I are about to go to dinner. I would invite you but I know that you got mad shit to do." Oh she's a regular comedian.

"Yeah, yeah." I say laughing at her. I never laugh this much when I'm on the phone with Aiden. Speaking of Aiden, he hasn't called or texted me all day.

"Okay then _Spencer_." There she goes saying my name in _that_ way again. I'm so glad she's not here to see the blush that creeps on to my cheeks. "I guess I'll see you at school tomorrow. I just wanted to hear your voice for a while." Huh? "I mean, I just wanted to see what you were doing." She quickly corrects and I can hear her slapping her head and what she'd just let slip.

"Okay." I smile into the phone. "I'll see you tomorrow" She says a quick bye and hangs up the phone.

What the hell just happened? I ask myself before getting up and finishing my homework.

* * *

><p>Madison ended up picking me up the next day for school. Thank God, my car will be out of the shop tomorrow. Aiden didn't call or text me last night and that is so unlike him. I didn't even see him all day at school until lunch.<p>

I'm sitting in the quad waiting for Madison and Carmen to show up.

"Hey baby." He snakes his arm around my waist and pull me into a kiss like shits normal... no you don't get off that easy.

"Don't hey baby me." I say pushing him back with a finger to his chest. "What happened to you last night and all day today?" I question him with a hand on my hip and a look so he knows I'm serious.

He laughs at my actions then answers, "I was beat after football tryouts so I fell asleep right when I got home, I didn't even eat dinner and I've been in _class_ all day that's why you haven't seen me." He smiles that cute smile he knows I can't resist before kissing me again. This time I reciprocate.

"I guess I'll accept that." I say as he pulls back.

"Okay baby. It won't happen again." He says cutely then kisses my forehead. "Can we go to lunch now cause I'm starved?" He pulls me towards the parking lot.

"Noooope baby." Madison already ordered a pizza and her and Carm went to pick it up like 10 minutes ago so they should be back any second now." And as if on cue Carmen and Madison pull up in the parking lot.

"Sup bitches, we come bearing gifts." Carmen says as she gets out of the car with the pizza.

"No bitch._ I_ come bearing gifts, your ass didn't even wanna go in half with me." Madison says getting out of the driver side.

"Okay. But I'm carrying it so." Carmen shrugs and Madison shakes her head I just smile the pair of them.

We made our way back into the quad and sit at the senior table. Aw, look at all the poor underclassmen subjected to eating the nastiest school lunch ever. Seriously, I don't know how we survived those three years on that stuff. It's lethal.

"Oh, there's the girl I was telling you about the other day Spence." Carmen says pointing towards the parking lot where Ashley was getting out of her car with a bag of Mickey D's. I'm still not quite sure how she gets to leave campus and she's just a Junior. Remind me to ask her that.

"What are you babbling about?" I ask Carmen, as I take another bite of my pizza.

"The kid with the famous music producer dad." She says with a mouth full of food. First off, ew. Second off, Ashley?

"Ashley?" I say confused.

"Yeah. Ashley Davis or something like that. Her dad owns the record label that The Script and Sara Bareilles are on." I watch as Ashley makes her way through the quad and sits at a table with some other juniors. I never thought about the connection between Ashley and Raife Davies; the owner of Epic Records. I guess that's something we'll have to talk about tonight when she calls.

If she calls I mean. Not that I want her to call or that I'm hoping she'll call or anything I just... oh nevermind.

"I catch up with you guys later." I say suddenly and get up from the table, getting confused looks from my friends. I go to the bathroom and splash water on my face cause I'm not really sure what's going on with me.

"Hey." I jump and turn around holding my chest, to see Ashley standing there smiling.

"Do you enjoy scaring people?" I smile as I grab a paper towel to wipe my face.

"No. Not people, just you." There go my cheeks again, ugh I can't with this girl and her power to make me blush.

"Oh." I say throwing away the paper towel. Well this is awkward. We're both just standing here.

"I saw you kinda jet in here and I just wanted to make sure you were okay." She says suddenly.

How adorably cute. "I'm fine." I say simply. I really am at lost for words right now. She somehow has that affect on me.

"That good." She said looking down, suddenly finding the floor interesting.

"It was sweet of you to check." I said moving closer to her. She looked up and caught my and eyes and now I'm the one that finds the floor more interesting.

"Um, I was wondering if... like... maybe later, you know... if you weren't doing anything we could-" Her sentence was cut short by the arrival of two freshmen giggling as they walked into the bathroom. Probably gossiping, cause that's what they like to do. Followed by the bell ringing. She forced a smile before saying a quick 'I'll talk to you later' and jetting out of the bathroom.

Perfect fucking timing freshmen.

* * *

><p>So here is the next update as promised. I am so glad you guys are liking it so far. Like I said before it's gonna start off pretty slow so bare with me. Review and tell me how you felt about this chapter. :)<p> 


	5. Chapter 4 What's Going On

**Chapter 4**

For the rest of the day I couldn't stop thinking about her and I didn't know what was happening to me. In last period I took our seats back in the back of the classroom cause I didn't know what was happening between Ashley and I but I knew whatever it was... it was wrong.

Aiden had football after school again so Madison gave me a ride home and stayed over and Carmen came over a little while later.

"What's up with you today, Spence?" Carmen suddenly asks. We're all on my bed watching T.V.

"Nothing." I say defensively.

"Right, cause you normally bail on us during lunch." She says raising her voice at me causing Madison to turn and look at her.

I don't get why she's so upset.

"I didn't feel good. God, is that a crime?"

"Nah, no crime. My bad. I thought you were off making friends with the new girl cause I saw her follow you into the bathroom." Okay, so you're watching me now? That's not weird.. that's not weird at all.

"Guess she had to pee." I lie, and honestly, I'm not even sure why. It was like telling them that Ashley and I are kinda becoming friends was wrong or something.

Carmen shrugged and we all went back to watching T.V. About an hour later I get a text from Ashley.

_'Wanna hang?' _It says. I don't answer right away. Not really sure if I should or not. _'Sorry I was being so weird earlier.' _She quickly adds. I smile then reply back.

_'It's cool. Yeah, let's hang pick me up in thirty?' _I text back.

_'K.' _She replies and I look up to see Carmen staring at me.

"Mighty smiley aren't we?" She jokes. "Who was that, Aiden?" She asks.

"Yeah." I lie.

"Is he coming over, cause I really don't feel like smelling his man funk." Madison sits up on the bed.

"No he was just saying that football practice was done and he was gonna call me later." I lie again.

"Oh good." She lays back down.

"Um... guys, I have a lot of homework to do so I'm gonna just start on that." I tell my friends hoping that would get them to leave so I could get ready to go and hang out with Ashley.

"Do your homework then bitch." Carmen says, not taking her eyes off the T.V.

"You guys and the T.V are a distraction. I say, hoping that excuse would be good enough.

"Ugh, fine!" Madison says, getting up from the bed. "If you wanted some alone time with Aiden that's all you had to say." She smiles as she pulls Carmen off the bed.

"Seriously, I just wanna do homework." I assure my friends as they give me the 'please don't even try that' look. "Aiden is _not _coming over." I tell them and I can tell they still don't believe me. Whatever, I'll let them think what they want.

"Call me tomorrow. I know you get your car in the morning, so just because you don't need rides anymore doesn't mean you should stop being a loyal friend." Madison laughs at herself.

"Oh, hardy har har. Real funny, cause I was your friend _before _you got your car. Now Carmen on the other hand, that's another story." Madison and I laugh, while I receive a glare and a middle finger from Carmen.

They leave and I get ready. Twenty minutes later I get a text from Ashley telling me she's outside. I run down the steps and almost into my mother.

"Whoa, slow down. Where you going on a school night?" My mom puts her hand up.

"Out with a friend. I'll be back by eleven mom." I say ducking around her, opening the front door and running out.

"All your homework better be done." My mom yells after me.

"Ofcourse." I yell as I get in Ashley's car. I haven't even touched my homework yet.

"Hey." She smiles a nose crinkling smile at me. Infectious. I can't help but smile back. She backs out of my driveway and we head off.

We ended up at the Ice Cream Parlor by the beach, I got a Cookies and Cream Ice Cream Cone and Ashley got Coffee flavor. It was such a nice night we decided to go for a walk on the beach.

"...yeah but, I love it here so far." Ashley finishes her sentence, licking her ice cream. I gulped and erased the imagines that had just formed in my head.

"I'm glad LA has been kind to you so far." I smile and bite my cone. My ice cream was long gone. I _love_ Cookies and Cream Ice Cream. "I heard something today and I wanna know if it's true." I stop walking and turn towards her, my voice sounding more serious then I intended.

"What?" She looks... I don't know... scared maybe. I can't really read her.

"It's nothing serious." I say putting a hand on her shoulder. She relaxed... a little.

"What is it?"

"Oh, just that you're the daughter of the infamous Raife Davies." I say turning and walking again. She follows.

"Oh." I swear she breathed a sigh of relief. "Yeah, he's my dad." She shrugged.

"Seriously?" My voice an entire octave higher than normal.

"Yes Spencer," She laughs. "No big deal." She says tossing her cone a dumpster as we passed by it. I guess she was over it.

"How can you say that having a dad that owns a record label that produces the music that The Script sings is no big deal?" I ask seriously.

"He's just dad, to me." She says as we approach a bench and sit.

"I guess." I say trying not to sound so much like a groupie.

"But enough about me _Spencer_... let's talk about you." There goes my stomach again. The way she says my name it's like... I don't even know why I'm attempting to explain this to you when I know I can't.

"My life's boring." I say plainly, as I finish off my cone.

"I doubt it." She makes eye contact and I swallow the contents in my mouth before they were ready to go down, almost choking.

"Okay." I say believing every word that falls from her lips. Suddenly, wanting to tell her anything she wanted to know. "What do you wanna know?" I ask, our eyes still connected—my stomach doing somersaults.

"Everything." She says, dangerously low, in voice different from her normal one. Sultry. Inviting.

I've lost all ability to speak and I feel like if I don't look away, I'll burn from the heat spreading across my cheeks. A car in the parking lot alarm goes off, breaking us from our trance and we both smile and look away. I look down at my phone and see that it's now 10:27pm and I promised I'd be home by eleven.

"We should get going." I say standing up from the bench. "Promised I'd be home by eleven."

* * *

><p>"I had fun tonight." She says as we pull into my drive way.<p>

"Yeah, me too." I return a smile.

"We should do it again sometime." She suggests, putting the car in park.

"Definitely." I smile and get out of the car. I look back and catch Ashley's eyes as I'm walking to my door. There's something about this girl.

I stay up 'til past midnight that night doing my homework but for some reason felt tonight, was so worth it.

* * *

><p>I wake up late the next morning, my mom and dad both having gone to work early weren't here to wake me- if I'm running late as usual. Thank God, Vincenzo, from the car shop, dropped my car off this morning. I quickly get ready and leave for school.<p>

I make it to school just as first period is letting out.

"Shit." I mumble to myself as I make my way throw the sea of teenagers, rushing to get to their next class to avoid detention. I usually put all my books in my bag before first period to avoid this, but because I was late... well you get the point.

I finally reach my locker and twisted the combination lock to open it. I put all books in my bag and shut my locker to find.

"Jeez, fuck!" I yell as Ashley stifles a laugh. "We've got to stop meeting like this." I tell her as she lifts up from her resting position on the lockers.

"You scare too easily, Carlin." She smiles and my stomach flutters.

"Did you seriously just call me by my last name?" I ask in mock disapproval. I think it's cute actually.

"Yep." She says taking the bag off my shoulder. I give her a puzzled look. "It looks heavy, I wanna help." She smiles resting back against the lockers.

"I'm gonna be late." I tell her, honestly, not really caring. She opens her mouth to say something.

"Baby." Aiden interrupts her, walking towards us from the quad. He snakes his arm around me when he reaches us and pulls me into him. "Long time no do this." He leaned down and kissed me. From the corner of my eye I see Ashley push off the lockers and back up. I quickly push Aiden off of me, suddenly feeling heat on my cheeks.

"Aiden, this is Ashley. Ashley, my boyfriend Aiden." I introduce them and I swear her face falls. She shakes his hand.

"Nice to meet you Ashley." Aiden says a bit too enthusiastically. He turns back to me, "You weren't here this morning. I had a coffee for you." He says putting his arm around my shoulder. He is never this touchy feely. I can tell Ashley is uncomfortable.

"I'm gonna head to class" Ashley says, then hands me my bag and disappears into the crowd. I can't help the disappointment that overcomes me.

"Sorry baby, I woke up late." I tell him as he takes my bag and drapes it over his shoulder.

"It's cool, I just gave it to Madison." He says as we start to walk towards my class. "Who said to tell you she's mad at you for not calling her this morning." He adds.

"I'll explain, she'll get over it." We stop in front of my class just as the bell rings. "You're late for class." I tell him as he hands me my bag.

"You're worth it." He smiles, then leans down and kisses me. "See you at lunch babe." He says then runs off in the direction of his class.

* * *

><p>We decided to go to Subway for lunch. It's only been a couple days and I'm already tired of fast food.<p>

"So.. Spencer... how was homework?" Carmen asks, in a tone I can't read.

"Um, fine." I say matching her tone. She's been so weird lately. Frankly, I'm over it.

"Hmmph." She says then continues eating her sub. I shake my head at her as Madison mouths 'what's up with her?' I shake my head and continue eating my food.

* * *

><p>In last period I decided to sit in the back of the classroom again, away from Ashley. My brain turns to mush when I'm around that girl, I swear. As the teacher was lecturing I was staring at the back of Ashley's head. Madison must've noticed.<p>

"Spencer, what are you doing?" She leans over my desk and whispers.

"Huh?" My gaze never leaving Ashley's brown locks.

"Spencer, what the hell?" Madison says a little louder now, breaking my staring contest with Ashley's hair. I look at her. "Why are you staring at her?" She asks, then waits for the answer. I don't have an answer.

At least... not one she'll understand—or like for that matter.

"I wasn't." I say, opening my notebook to write the notes down on the board. Madison gets thee hint then turns back around in her desk and does the same.

What was _that_ about? I think to myself before continuing to jot down the notes.

* * *

><p>Again the support has been amazing. I love it, so keep it coming! YAY! I hope you guys like this chapter!<p> 


	6. Chapter 5 When Confusion Sets In

**Chapter 5**

"Okay class, tomorrow we're going to start working on the play." The teacher said as the bell rang. She stood up then added, "So please work on your parts. I need to see everyone who has a lead role to stay for minute." Madison sighed, then glanced at me. She had a lead role.

"I'll catch up with you later." I tell her as I put my books in my bag. I had so much homework to do tonight. So not looking forward to it.

"OK." She says joining the rest of the people who had a lead role in the front of the class with the teacher.

I leave the classroom and walk outside towards my car when I hear someone calling my name. I turn around and see Ashley running towards me.

"Hey." She says out of breath.

"Hey." I smile at the fact that she just ran to catch up with me. "You okay?" I ask bending down to her level. She had her hands on her knees, clearly trying to catch her breath. She put a finger up as she tried to even out her breathing.

"Man you walk fast." She smiles as she finally catches her breath and we continue towards the parking lot. I laugh as she asks, "What are you doing today?"

"I have a mountain of homework." I tell her as we reach my car.

"Good." She smiles then adds, "How about we climb that mountain together?"

"How about you climb the mountain and I stay down at the bottom and watch you." I joke, not even sure what I actually meant by that. And by the look on Ashley's face I could tell she didn't get it either.

"What?" She scrunches up her face. "You wanna check out my ass as I climb, is what you're saying?" I can feel the blush spreading across my cheeks.

"Would you like to come over and do homework with me?" I ask, finally. She was about to speak when my phone rang. I look down at the caller ID to see it's Madison. I tell her one sec then answer my phone. "Yeah?"

"Ugh, where are you? I wanna run lines with you tonight." She says and I can hear her closing her locker.

"Um." I try and think of a lie—I got nothing, so I just tell the truth. "I have so much homework, Mads." I say unlocking my door.

"Boo your life, Spencer. We can run lines after you're done. Say around 9ish?" She questions, and I can't think of a lie fast enough. Truth is, I wanted to be alone with Ashley. I didn't know why, I just knew that was what I wanted.

"Oh you know what, I forgot I'm supposed to be helping my mom clean the attic today, so I won't even get to my homework 'til late." I lie to my best friend, something I never did before—Ashley.

She sighs then says a quick 'fine' and hangs up. I guess she's mad at me.

"I'm confused." Ashley says suddenly, as I throw my bag in the back seat of my 09' Camry.

"Huh?" I say, realizing that she just heard that whole conversation between Madison and I.

"You ask me to come over, but you're busy?"

"No, I just told her that to get her off the phone."

She makes a face "So you lied to your best friend?"

"Yeah." I say in a low voice.

"Why?" I see the confusion written all over her face.

"Cause I wanted you to myself." I blurt out, realizing that's not what I meant to say. Or was it...

She smiles as I blush—yet again.

"I'll meet you there in like an hour." Smiles then saunters off towards her car. See what I mean about my brain and her ability to turn it to mush?

* * *

><p>I'm currently in my room laying on my bed doing homework next to Ashley. Occasionally rubbing arms or our hands 'accidentally' touching.<p>

"You're not good at math are you?" Ashley jokes as she explains yet another equation to me. Having a junior know how to do my Calc homework better than me is rather embarrassing really. I mean, Ashley _is _technically a genius. Almost all her classes are senior classes and she could graduate this year if she wanted—she had enough credits.

"Ha ha. No one told you to be so smart." I bump shoulders with her and we both giggle.

That went on for hours, the 'flirting' that is. Wait, not flirting—cause shes a girl. And I don't flirt with girls.

"How did you even make it to the 12th grade?" Ashley quips. We're sitting on the floor now, attempting to do our Lit homework.

"Don't judge me okay. I have low self-esteem." I tell her poking my bottom lip out.

"Aw. I'm sowee." She says in the cutest voice ever then rubs her finger across my bottom lip. _Shiver city. _

We stare at each other for what seemed like forever before the sound of my phone ringing brought me back to reality. "Hello?" I answer.

"Hey baby." Aiden coo's on the other end. "Can I come over?" Ugh, why today? Why now?

"I have a bunch of homework Aiden, I can't." I tell him and at the mention of his name Ashley's whole demeanor changed.

"Spencer what's going on with you?" His voice is low and he sounds a bit hurt. "Are we gonna break up or something?" Where did he get that idea? All I said was that I had homework. Anywhere in that sentence did you hear me tell him I wanted to break up? Me neither. Him and Carmen have both gone off the deep end.

I let out a deep sigh before answering. "Aiden, I didn't say anything about breaking up. What are you even talking about?" Frankly, I'm annoyed and over this conversation. Ashley stands up from the floor, and mouths that she's just gonna go, I put my hand over the mic of the phone and say, "No please, don't. Just give me one sec."

"...are you even listening Spencer?" Aiden finishes, whatever he was saying. Yeah, no. I didn't catch any of that.

"Yeah, Aiden. I gotta go. I promise I'll call you later." I tell him and hang up the phone without waiting for a response. I sigh a frustrated sigh, then toss my phone on the bed.

"You ok?" Ashley asks, rejoining me in her previous spot on the floor.

"Just fine." I say rubbing my temples. Carmen, Madison, and Aiden were all giving me headaches, often—all of a sudden. Or maybe I was just, overextending myself. Either way, I was tired.

"I could go, Spencer. Really... I don't want to cause problems between you and Aiden." Was she causing problems? Was Ashley the reason I've been feeling so stretched thin lately?

"No. It's not you." I like having her around. She makes me smile and laugh. I stand up a hold my hand out for her to take. "How about we take a break from homework." I suggest, as she takes my hand and helps me pull her up off the floor.

"And what would you suggest we do, _Carlin?_" I love the way she says my name—my last name, that is.

I swallow, suddenly unable to think of anything. I look down and realize that we're still holding hands. She realizes it too and smiles.

"You gonna let that go, Carlin?" She looks back down at our still connected hands. I blush, then quickly release the hold on her hand. I force out a laugh as Ashley sits down on my bed. I join her.

"You wanna watch T.V?" I ask, trying to break the silence.

"Nah. I'm good."

"Ooook." I wipe my now clammy hands on my jeans. I had no idea why this girl made me so nervous.

"Why you so nervous, Spencer?" Oh my God, get outta my head.

I gulp a lemon, "I...I'm... I'm not." I stutter out. Oh yeah. _Real_ smooth. Nope you're not nervous at all.

"Right." Ashley laughs, scooting closer to me. My heart starting to beat faster, I could practically see it through my shirt. "I like you Spencer." She says plainly, running a finger down my arm. I'm not sure if she even meant it how I took it. I don't even know if she likes girls.

Of course you know.

No. I assure my brain. I don't _know_.

There's a knock on my door and I release my breathe, not even realizing that I was holding it. Ashley moves away from me as my mom enters my room.

"Spencer I—Oh, hello. I wasn't aware that Spencer had company." Seriously mom? You didn't see the Porsche parked in your driveway? "I'm Paula, Spencer's mom." She walks over and extends her hand out for Ashley to shake.

"Ashley." Aw, she looks nervous. That's so cute.

My mom smiles then looks at me. "I came to tell you that dinner will be ready in 10."

"Okay mom." I say as she walks back out my door.

"Tell your friend I'm setting her a place." She yells back to me.

"Oh no, that's okay." Ashley says shaking her head. "I probably should get going anyways." She begins to pack up her things.

"She wasn't asking." I assure Ashley. When my mom stays you're staying for dinner, you don't deny her.

* * *

><p>"So, Ashley. You're new to Spencer's school, I presume?" My mom asks, Ashley quickly swallowing the food in her mouth to answer.<p>

"Oh, yes ma'am. My dad and I moved here like two weeks ago from San Diego." If you're wondering about Ashley's mom, she's non-existent. Well, she exists—but she bailed right after Ashley was born.

"Oh fun, so have you met any cute guys at King High yet?" My mom question.

"Mom!" I shrieked, dropping my fork on my plate. She always had to embarrass me.

"It's ok, Spencer." Ashley looks at me. "Um, no Ma'am actually I haven't. I want to focus on my school work." She says turning back to look at my mom.

"You hear that Spencer? You should follow in Ashley's footsteps." She said pointing her fork at me.

"I thought you_ loved _Aiden." I said in a mocking tone. She's the one always asking about him and pestering me about hanging out with him. And oh my God, when we had that 'talk' in the 10th grade, she swore I had already slept with him. So much for trusting me to make the right decisions, huh ma?

"Aiden's a nice enough young man." My dad chimes in. As you can see, he barely says anything. Hell, between working at the Teen Center and counseling kids on the side, I barely even see him. And the free time he does have, he either spends it fixing things or hanging with Glen aka man whore. I shoulda been a boy.

"Yeah, he's nice enough. He's just not good enough for _my_ baby." My mom adds.

"I think Aiden's sweet." Ashley interjects. "He treats Spencer real nice." She adds, with a smile, dropping gaze back down to her plate.

"He's a sweet boy but-" My mom starts, I'm so done talking about this.

"OKAY!" I interrupt her. "Moving now please." I say shoving a fork full of food into my mouth.

I guess Aiden had been the topic of choice at dinner tonight because when we stopped talking about him no one could find anything else to say.

Figures. My mom always wanted to dip her toes into _my_ business.

* * *

><p>"Sorry about that awkwardness we call dinner." I apologize to Ashley as we enter my room and I shut the door behind us.<p>

"It's okay. At least your mom and dad attempt to want to know about what's going on in your life." She says looking down. "It was fun..." She trails off, taking a seat on my bed.

"Yeah, never a dull moment in the Carlin household." I joke and sit down next to her.

"Aiden is a really good guy Spencer." Who is she trying to convince? Me, or herself.

"Yeah." I say in a voice that even I don't recognize. Ashley lifts her head and looks at me. Her hazel eyes hypnotizing me. I suddenly can't breathe.

"Spencer..." She says, her voice an octave lower than normal.

I swallow, "Yeah?" My heart is beating so fast, I feel like it's gonna explode outta my chest.

"I wanna kiss you." She says as her gaze falls to my lips.

I feel an instant pang in my chest. I close my eyes and reply, "I wouldn't stop you." I barely whisper. She heard me though, I know because the bed shifted and I can feel her moving closer to me—closing the gap between us. Slowly... So painfully slow. My breath hitches when I realize she's so close that I can feel the heat radiating from her body and her breath on my lips. She hasn't closed the gap completely yet. Letting it hang in the air—making me want her that much more.

The feelings I'm having right now are so confusing, but right now, in this very moment, I don't care. I just need to ease the pain—the urge to connect our lips. To taste her. She still hasn't closed the gap. The bed suddenly shifts again, and I open my eyes to see that she's standing now.

I'm so confused, did I do something wrong?

"Ashley?" I question and I know she can hear the need in my voice. Need with a mixture of confusion.

"I think I should go." Ashley said suddenly, grabbing her bag off the floor. Not even waiting for me to respond she jetted out the door. I heard the sound of her engine starting and her backing out of the driveway.

I've never been so confused in my life.

* * *

><p><em>Another update for you lovely people. Still taken aback at the support for this story! You guys are all so freaking amazing! Hope you enjoyed this update and there could be another one as soon as tonight. I'm not sure yet though. But thanks so much for reading and reviewing!<em>


	7. Chapter 6 Tell Me How You Really Feel

**Chapter 6**

The next day I wake up, still confused about the events that took place the night before and for the first time since school started back I was not looking forward to seeing Ashley.

She'd left me, on my bed, wanting her—when she was the one who made the advance in the first place.

At school, I tried to avoid Ashley like the plague. I knew that when last period came around we'd eventually have to see each other but I was gonna be damn sure that last period was the only time I saw her.

I went through the day in zombie mode, not really paying attention to anything—zoned out. I didn't hear the conversation that Madison and Carmen attempted to have with me in first period. Or the argument that Aiden tried to start over lunch, quickly realizing I wasn't paying him any attention—he went back to the whole theory of me wanting to break up with him and that's when I really tuned him out. Probably confirming whatever he was thinking in that small brain of his.

When last period rolled around, I quickly took my seat in the back of the class and buried my head in my Lit book. I'd rather not even see her face right now. I wasn't sure what the feelings I had for Ashley meant, I mean, she was the first girl I've ever thought about kissing—wanted to kiss no, needed it. They were confusing, yet so inviting. Like I'd be safe with her, even though I knew it was wrong, according to everything Paula Carlin has ever taught me, yet, I didn't really care.

And Aiden, he's the first and only guy I've ever loved and I wouldn't dare wanna hurt him, but you can't control who have feelings for. Destiny does that for you.

I pretended to read my Lit book as she walked into class. I could see over my book that she kept glancing back at me, but I never acknowledged her. You might think I'm being a brat, and maybe I am, but last night she really hurt my feelings and I wanted her to know it.

Halfway through class Madison slipped me a note. I lazily opened it and read it.

'_What is up with you today Spence? It's like you're the walking dead.'_

I grabbed the pen off my desk and scribbled back. _'It's that time of the month' _and tossed it back to her.

She wrote something then handed it back. _'Liar, I know when it's that. Are you and Aiden breaking up or something? I heard you guys arguing at lunch.' _You mean him arguing with himself, I think to myself then continue reading_ 'Is this about that thing that didn't happen over break?'_ Now that I think about it, I'm kinda glad that it didn't happen. I mean don't get me wrong, I love Aiden, but sometimes I feel like it's the only reason he sticks around—like he can't leave me until he gets what he's been working for all these years. Sounds sick I know but, that's how I feel sometimes.

_'Okay fine, it's not my time but it's not about Aiden either.' _I hand her back the note. She sighs then writes something down and quickly tosses it back. I suddenly got the image in my head of Mrs. Randson turning around and seeing us passing notes and makes us come up in front of the class to read it—like the teachers did in elementary school. So embarrassing.

Maybe if that did happen, Ashley would see how much damage she's cause. I mentally shake my head at myself. I make it sound like she hit me with her car or something.

_'You're killing me here Spence, we barely talk later and you've been busy so much that I don't know what to make of it. What's going on with you? I"m your BEST friend. You know you can tell me anything.' _It reads. Madison was right, her and I used to talk about everything. But how do I tell her that I think I'm falling for someone I shouldn't want, someone I know I can't have—a girl.

_'Come to my house today after school and we'll do homework together. I'm fine Mads. Just having a bad day.' _I toss the note back to her and she flashes me a smile. I guess she believes me.

* * *

><p>The loud shrieking of the bell pulled me out of my dream. Shit. I must've dosed off. Why didn't Madison wake me? I jump up and look to see half the class is already gone, including Ashley.<p>

"I'm gonna go pick my sister up from practice then come to your house." Madison says, gathering her things and stuffing them into her bag.

"Ok." I say plainly as I do the same. I didn't have much homework today, thank God. So I only needed to take two books home with me. I swear lugging all the books on my back all day, is getting really old and painful.

I leave the class and head for my locker. I could see Ashley standing next to it. Great. How did she even know I would go to my locker after class? I shake the thought's outta my head and head to my locker, a little more oomph in my step—I didn't want her to know that what happened last night affected me as much as it did.

"You need something?" I ask, spinning the combination lock on my locker, my tone a little harsher than intended.

"Spencer, I'm sorry I ran out on you last night..." She starts, but I was done listening before she even opened her mouth.

"Look."I cut her off, shoving the books in my locker then slamming it. "You're good." I start, turning to her with a more than serious look on my face. "What reason did you have to stay anyways? It was late so I get it. Whatever" I end with a shrug then turn and head towards the parking lot. She runs after me.

"Spencer, wait up please." She calls out behind. I quicken my pace and unlock my door as I enter the parking lot. Almost everyone is already gone. The only cars left are either teachers, jocks, or Ashleys—you never know which car she'll drive to school. "Spencer!" She yells, still chasing after me.

I continue to ignore her and open the car door to get inside, but she shut it before I could. When did she catch up to me?

"What the hell?" I protest, backing up as she stands in between me and the car door.

"I know you're mad at me Spencer, and you have every right to be. But I need to talk to you and I'm not letting you get in this car until you hear me out." She says sternly. I smile inwardly at her persistence.

"I have to meet Madison." I say averting my gaze anywhere where her eyes weren't. They trap you—those eyes.

"Well then, the quicker you stop being so stubborn and listen, the quicker you can go meet your friend." She says trying to meet my eyes. I'm doing a good job at avoiding hers right now. I don't say anything, so she takes that as her cue to continue. "I know I fucked up last night Spencer, leaving like that..." She pauses, still tryna find my eyes. "For that I'm sorry. But there's somethings—somethings you don't know about me Spencer, and I wanna be sure you're ready for what was about to happen last night before it actually happens." She finishes, lifting my chin so my eyes would _finally_ meet hers.

"Why'd you run out though. You coulda just said all this last night." I say, looking back down.

She lifts my chin back up. "I should've and I'm sorry. But I like you Spencer, I like you a lot. And I know I shouldn't because you have a boyfriend and I'm no home-wrecker but I can't deny the feelings I have for you." My heart beat picks up.

"Ashley, I..." I start, not sure what I want to say. "I'm not gay." Falls from my mouth and immediately regret it. It's not what I meant to say, but on some level I needed to say it, so even I would believe it—I don't though.

"I know. And that's why I didn't kiss you last night."

"Are..." I trail off, letting my question hang in the air. She knew what I was asking.

"Yeah." She answers, looking down, suddenly finding her fingers interesting.

I lift her chin and say, "It's okay, that you are. I just... I don't know if I am. And I have Aiden, and I don't wanna hurt him. I just need time... you know?" She shakes her head and we both smile.

"So are you done being mad at me?" She asks, biting the inside of her lip. So adorable, I forget that she's only 16.

"Yeah. I'm done being mad at you." I smile as she moves out from blocking my door.

"Good." She smiles. "I gotta go, my dad's gonna kill me, I was supposed to meet him for a late lunch like," She glances down at her phone. "Thirty minutes ago." She finishes backing up in the direction of her car. "Call me later?"

"Yeah." I say tossing my bag on the passenger side.

"Kay." She smiles then runs off in the direction of her car.

I'm so glad we fixed this cause, although Ashley I have only known each other a few days, I couldn't imagine going another second not talking to her.

* * *

><p>Madison and I are in my room doing homework, well she's doing homework. I'm thinking about Ashley, and how she said that she liked me. I don't know what I would have done if we had kissed last night. It's weird cause in the moment, I've never wanted anything more in my life, but after she explained—I get where she's coming from.<p>

"Spencer, where are you spacing out to now?" Madison asks, a little annoyance in her voice.

I wanna tell her about Ashley and I, I'm just not sure how she would react. It could go one of two ways; I tell her and she accepts it and says it doesn't matter who I lo..like and that she'll stick by me no matter what—or she could totally be a homophobic, write me off and never speak to me again. The latter of the two is what scares me the most.

And I don't even know if I'm...you know..._ that_ way. I've been with Aiden as long as I can remember, what I do know is that these feelings I'm having for her—they're real. And I need to figure out what I want to do about them.

"Spencer!" Madison yells, snapping her fingers in my face trying to get my attention. Oops, spaced out again. "You know what, I'm just gonna go." She says standing, gathering her things.

"No, wait!" I plead. I can't keep secrets from my best friend. It's just not right. "If I tell you what's going on with me, you promise you won't bail?" I ask vaguely, knowing she would agree without hearing the news first, just so she _can _hear what it was.

"Duh. Now spill." She says sitting back down on the bed.

I take a deep breath, preparing myself for what could happen next. I could lose my best friend over something as simple as loving someone society says I shouldn't.

"I've been hanging out with Ashley..." I pause, trying to read her face. She's giving me nothing so I continue. "We've been hanging out and things... we'll I..." I'm finding it hard to get the words out. Madison gesturing her hand for me to hurry and say whatever it was. I'm not sure what I'm trying to say. "I think that I like her, Mads." I finally choke out, a lump suddenly growing in my throat.

She sat quietly for a second, scanning my face—judging me. At least, that's what I felt like she was doing.

"And Aiden..." She says suddenly and I get what she's asking.

"I love him Mads, you know I do. I don't know what's going on in my head or why I'm having these feelings but I am, and I just need to know that as my friend you'll stick by my side and not aban-" She places and finger over my mouth, shaking her head.

I fight back the tears that are threatening to fall. I don't know why I feel like a weight has been lifted off my chest.

"Is Ashley..." She trails off again but I get what she wants to know.

"Yeah. She is." I don't like it that she's not looking at me and I can't read her. I don't know if she's disgusted, disappointed, angry or what—with me.

"Did she make a move on you or something?" She asks, finally looking up at me. I catch her eyes, but can't read them.

"No." I say quickly, realizing that's not the whole truth. No more lies, I thought to myself then said. "Well, kinda yes. Yesterday.." I start and her head shoots up, realizing I lied to her about what I would be doing. "Yesterday she came over to do homework and then she stayed for dinner and we came back in here and she said that she wanted to kiss me." I finish my sentence with a sigh. Replaying that moment in my head.

"Did you kiss?"

"No, she freaked out and left. Today, after school, she came up to me and apologized and told me she was gay and that she liked me but didn't wanna rush me, or break up me and Aiden." I tell my best friend who smiles.

"That's cool of her to think about Aiden's feelings." Madison loved Aiden like a brother, she didn't wanna see him get hurt and neither did I.

"Yeah." I say flatly, getting up from the bed and walking around to the side Madison was on—pulling the chair from my computer desk and sitting. "You don't hate me do you?" I asks and Madison laughs.

"God no, Spencer. I could never hate you. I'm sad actually." I look down at the floor. "I'm sad that you thought you couldn't talk to your best friend about something as important as this." She finishes. I look up at her and she's smiling. "I love you, Spencer. I don't care who you chose to love." Love—the word hit me like a ton a bricks. I didn't love Ashley, did I? No... it's not possible, I've only known her for a week. I tell myself.

I giggle and tell Madison that love isn't apart of the picture yet and she gives me a look before saying "I've seen how you look at this girl Spencer, trust me." I slap my best friends arm playfully as we lay back down and go back to doing our homework.

I loved how everything went back to normal so fast. How Madison didn't linger on what I had just told her and treat me differently—like I had a disease or something. Like she could catch the _gay_. I'd forgotten how good of a friend Madison really was, until that moment...

* * *

><p>Ashley called me that night as I was getting into bed. Freshly showered and ready to drift off in abyss. I told her that I told Madison—and hoped that was okay with her. She assured me that it was before asking how Madison took it. I told her surprisingly well and I could tell she was relieved.<p>

"You think you could come over this weekend?" She asks, as yet another yawn escapes my lips.

"Like to your house?"

She giggles and says, "Yeah, duh. Silly." I laugh and tell her sure. "You sound so tired." She says, yawning herself.

"I am. Cause you wanna call at midnight like we're gonna have phone sex or something and our parents need to be asleep first." I laugh.

"We could ha-"

"Don't you even think it." I interrupt her and we both giggle.

"Could you just stay on the phone until we fall asleep?" Ashley asks, in that cute voice she gets when she's shy about something.

"Yeah." I answer quickly. "Sure." I add.

"Thank you... Goodnight Spencer."

"Goodnight Ashley." I say as sleep finally wins.


	8. Chapter 7 Complicating Things More

**Chapter 7**

I woke up the next morning with a smile plastered on my face remembering yesterday. I practically came out to my best friend and she didn't freak out and I'm falling for someone who makes my heart beat like no one has ever made it beat before.

I quickly get dressed and head to school—grabbing breakfast on the way there.

I make my way into first period, Carmen and Madison are already in the back of the classroom talking.

"Hey ladies." I say as I make my way to my seat and sit down.

Madison says hi and Carmen just gives me a look. I swear I don't know what's going on with that girl. It's like she's an entirely different person. I want my friend back.

"We were thinking about going to that new Italian place and getting some take out for lunch Spence, you in?" Madison asks me as Mr. Fitz walks the classroom.

"Sure." I shrug, taking a book outta my bag.

"Sure you won't be too busy for us?" Carmen snipes. Getting a look from Madison.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I turn around to face her and ask. She opened her mouth to speak but Mr. Fitz beckoned us all to be quiet and began teaching.

I took out my phone and texted Madison. _'What is going on with her?'_ I text.

_'I don't know. She's been acting weird lately.' _She replies. No shit.

_'I'm gonna talk to her after school cause this is ridiculous. I feel like we're not even friends anymore.'_ I say feeling a little sad at the thought. Sure, Carmen was being an asshole right now, but we've been friends since freshman year. If there was something I could do to fix us—I would do it.

_'Yeah. Do that.'_ Madison texts back then puts her phone in her purse. I don't know why I get the feeling Madison knows a lot more then she's putting on. I shake the drama outta my head and listen to Mr. Fitz lecture.

* * *

><p>When lunch time rolled around I got a text from Ashley, asking me what I was doing for lunch. I told her about where we were going and invited her to come along. Now that Madison knew about our 'situation' I wasn't scared about bringing her around anymore. She gleefully accepted my invitation and joined us. After we picked up our food we headed back to school to eat. Thank goodness our lunch was an hour.<p>

We're sitting at our usual table eating, Ashley is at the end of the table talking to Madison—which I don't mind. I actually appreciate Madison attempting to get to know her. Carmen sat quietly at the other end of the table watching Madison talk to Ashley. Which if you ask me—is borderline creepy.

"You gonna eat that babe?" Aiden ask, breaking me outta my inner thoughts. I look down at my take out box and realize I've barely touched my food. I look at him and shake my head, he grabs it and scuffs it down. Boys—yuck. "Can I come over today, after school?" He asks with food still in his mouth.

"You don't have practice today?"

He swallows then answer, "Nope, well we do but as captain I don't have to be there today." He says proudly. Aiden took his sports extremely serious. He'd gotten a basketball scholarship to UCLA in the 10th grade—unofficially of course. They didn't actually offer it to him until the end of his junior year when King High won the state championships.

"I might have to help my mom, but if not, then sure." Truthfully, I was hoping to hang out with Ashley. She hadn't asked me to hang out today or anything but I had hoped she would.

"Kay babe." He smiled and kissed me—I zoned. "You thirsty?" Aiden asked and I must've nodded because he got up and left.

I pulled out my phone and texted Carmen to meet me at my car after school, that we needed to talk – apparently. I watched as she took her phone out and read my text. She shook her head then slide her keyboard open to reply. My phone buzzed and I looked down to read it. 'Can't. Got homework.' Was all it said. Ugh, really Carmen, really! I wrote back a please, that it was important. She scoffed when she read it, then wrote back a 'whatever.' I'm not sure if that means she's gonna show up or not. I didn't reply back.

Aiden returned to our table with a water. I thank him, opening the water and guzzling it down. I was getting a headache from all the drama in my life, drama I felt like I was creating. The bell rang signaling the end of lunch.

* * *

><p>After school I waited at my car for Carmen, not sure if she would even show up or not. After 15 minutes I decided she wasn't coming, so I got in my car and texted Aiden. Ashley was busy today after school, helping her dad at the record label, so I was free.<p>

_'I'm free. You can come.' _I text him.

_'Cool. I'm gonna go home and shower then come over.'_ He texts back. I sighed, knowing what Aiden meant by that. He wanted to try that thing that was supposed to happen this summer, but didn't. I think I should hurry and have that talk with him, I'm just waiting for the right time. When is it the right time to break up with your boyfriend, for no reason in particular? Well, no reason he would understand – I'm falling for someone else, a girl. With the day I've had, I'm not even in the mood to attempt to try and explain that.

As I put my key in the ignition my passenger door opens and Carmen gets in.

"Hey." She says, not looking at me.

"Hey." I say back looking at her. She's playing with her hands, which I know she only does when she's nervous. What was she nervous about? "What's going on with you Carm?" She turns and looks at me, finally. It looks like she's been crying. I'm so confused right now.

"I don't know." She says softly, averting her gaze back to her hands.

"I feel like we're not friends anymore. Did I do something wrong?" I asks turning my body towards her.

"No." She whispers, still looking down.

"Then what is it?" I don't get it. Carmen is not this girl that's in my car right now, Carmen's not shy. Far from it actually.

She sits quietly for a while before saying, "I'm sorry."

"For what exactly?"

"Everything." She says looking up at me then getting out of the car before I could say something back. Well, that conversation was pointless. I pull off and head home.

* * *

><p>I didn't have much homework so it only took me about 45 minutes to do it. Aiden showed up just as I was finishing.<p>

"Hey babe." He says kissing me then sitting down on my bed.

"Hey Aide." I reply standing up from my computer desk, stretching.

"I missed you." He lays back.

"We've only been apart a couple hours, Aiden." I say joining him on the bed flipping on the T.V.

"I miss you when I'm away from you for a second." He looks over at me smiling. Normally, this would turn into a full fledged make out session but for some reason this—everything feels so...wrong.

"Aiden, I wanted to talk to you about something." I start, not really sure of exactly how I was gonna say this. I wanted to be with Aiden, I wanted to be 'normal' and have this normal relationship. One I wouldn't have to hide—to keep a secret.

"What is it babe?" He ask sitting up, hearing the seriousness in my voice. "Are you about to break up with me?" I should of said yes, just gotten it over with right then and there. But the look in his eyes, we'd been together for almost four years and he'd been the perfect boyfriend. Always there when I needed him, never anything but good to me. And we'd been friends longer than that.

I couldn't, I couldn't be the one to hurt him this bad. I wouldn't be the one.

"No. " I say shaking my head. "It's nothing, never mind" I'm a coward I know.

"Whew." He says, releasing his breath. "Hey, I was thinking." He said moving closer to me. "I love you, Spencer. And I know that you weren't ready before, but I was thinking maybe we could try again." He finishes his sentence, placing a kiss on my neck and my mind immediately drifts off to Ashley. I didn't say anything when Aiden laid me back on the bed kissing my neck, still. I didn't stop him when he proceeded to undress himself and me. I was somewhere else. It was like I was hovering above my body, watching all these things happen but I was unable to stop it.

I knew I shouldn't have let it happen because now, now everything would be different—more real. After it was over I felt worse then I had felt when I was gonna break up with him. This moment proved everything for me, because long after Aiden was gone, I longed for something more. Something, I knew Aiden would never be able to give me.

But now, there was no way I could tell him I didn't think we belonged together.

* * *

><p><em>I hope this chapter didn't disappoint you guys too much! I love you guys thanks for reading and reviewing! You're all amazing!<em>


	9. Chapter 8 Make You Feel My Love

**Chapter 8**

A couple of months passed and my birthday was approaching fast. It was only a week away and I had no idea what I was doing for it. My relationship with Aiden had become exactly what I didn't want it to—pretty much all sexual. I spent most of my time with Ashley, Aiden didn't notice much because football season had picked up and the time we did spend together was quick. He'd become addicted to me—in his words. After school quickies and sometimes on the weekend, were really the only time I saw him.

Madison and Carmen noticed, though. I'd told Madison about what happened with me and Aiden and she didn't understand why I'd taken it there, knowing I was catching feelings for someone else. I didn't understand either. She told me that I needed to end things with Aiden before things got worse—but I already knew that.

Carmen and I's relationship, if you can even call it that, has been pretty much non-existent. Estranged. I feel like I don't even know her anymore. It's weird cause we used to be so close, I guess I'm not the only one that has changed since the beginning of senior year. Madison noticed and told me that she'll come around, and be back to her normal ol' self in no time. Come around to what? Did Carmen know about my feelings for Ashley? Had Madison told her?

Ashley and I started hanging out on a regular basis, like I said, two or three times a week and most weekends. We've become extremely close. My feelings for her growing each day, but me still not acting on them or even admitting to having them—especially not to Ashley.

* * *

><p>As I pulled in front of Ashley's house a regular weekend hangout, Aiden called.<p>

"Hello." I answer, putting the car in park.

"Hey babe. What you doing today?" He asks and I can hear the video game in the background.

"Nothing." I say getting out the car.

"Can you come over later?" He asks, before yelling at his game. Probably playing COD: Black Ops. "Maybe we can go to the movies or something?" He suggest and I sigh. I don't know why hanging out with Aiden had suddenly felt like a chore. Maybe because all we do lately is have sex.

"Maybe." I say doleful. I really needed to sit down and have a conversation with him. I just wanted sure exactly what to say. I mean, I had no real reason to break up with him. He was great to me, but I was falling for someone else—hard.

He sighs and says, "Fine Spencer, don't come over. I'll just talk to you later." He hangs up before I can respond. The _old_ me would have called him back to work it out... Sometimes I miss that, simpler times. When everything in my life made sense and I _wasn't_ falling for someone that wasn't Aiden, someone that wasn't a girl.

I ring the doorbell when I reach her door and not more than a minute later I was greeted by a smiling Ashley.

"Hey." She smiles a nose crinkling smile. I love that smile. So genuine.

"Hi." I say as she grabs my hand and pulls me back towards the driveway. "Where are we going?" I ask, confused. I thought we were spending the day at her house.

"It's a surprise." She says as we reach her dads Porsche. "You don't wanna sit in the house and be bored all day do you?" She purses her lips and tilts her head.

"I'm sure we could find something to do." I say, realizing how she probably took that. Ashley has a dirty mind. A smirk creeps onto her lips and I quick say, "Or we could go out." She laughs and shakes her head, opening the door on the passenger side for me to get in.

"You have a dirty mind, Spencer Carlin." She says shutting the door and getting in the drivers side. "I like it." She adds and we pull off.

* * *

><p>We pull up outside a really tall building and a man in a valet attendant uniform opens the door for me and helps me out. Ashley gets out of the driver side as the man gets into the car and drives off in it. She pulls me into the building.<p>

We travel up 27 floors and exit the elevator. I see the sign on the doors and realize where we are.

"Seriously?" I asks, barely able to hold in my excitement.

"Seriously." She smiles as we go through the double doors that have Epic Records on them.

* * *

><p>"...and this is the studio." She finishes her sentence opening the door to a room filled with a million buttons and other professional looking thingys and <em>oooooh pretty mic<em>. I get distracted by the gold glittery mic resting on the mic stand in the booth. Ashley noticed. "You wanna touch it, Spence?" I side-eye her. "The mic, I mean." She smiles and grabs my hand pulling me into the booth. "Sit." She instructs me, pointing to a chair in the corner. She grabs a stool and sits down in front of the piano.

"Ashley?" I question.

"Can I play you something?" She asks, smiling at me. How could I say no?

I shook my head and she began to play.

_When the rain is blowing in your face._

_And the whole world is on your case._

_I could offer you a warm embrace._

_To make you feel my love._

She played and sang so effortlessly. I got lost in her words—loving every minute of it.

_When the even shadows and the stars appear._

_And there is no one there to dry your tears,  
>I could hold you for a million years<br>To make you feel my love._

I know you haven't made your mind up yet,

She sang then glanced up at me and smiled—continuing.

_But I would never do you wrong.  
>I've known it from the moment that we met,<br>No doubt in my mind where you belong._

I'd go hungry; I'd go black and blue,  
>I'd go crawling down the avenue.<br>No, there's nothing that I wouldn't do  
>To make you feel my love.<p>

The storms are raging on the rolling sea  
>And on the highway of regret.<br>Though winds of change are blowing wild and free,  
>You ain't seen nothing like me yet.<p>

I could make you happy, make your dreams come true.  
>Nothing that I wouldn't do.<br>Go to the ends of the Earth for you,  
>To make you feel my love.<p>

She finished singing and I wanted to say something—anything. But my mouth wouldn't open.

"You didn't like it, did you?" She stands up, rushing over to me, getting down on her knees.

"Did you write that?" I ask, suddenly able to speak again.

"Yeah, last night actually." She answers with a smile.

"It's amazing." I say truthfully, putting my hand on her shoulder.

"Well, I had great inspiration." She said standing up, pulling me up with her. "Spencer, I-"

"Did you write that for me?" I interrupt her. We're really close now, dangerously close. I can feel her breath on my ear as she whisper a husky yeah.

"I know that we've only known each other for a couple months and we don't know what this is that's happening between us but I know that I like you Spencer, and I mean every single lyric I sang to you." I wanna kiss her—more than I had wanted to the first time. I shouldn't. At least not until I have that talk with Aiden.

I pull back from her and smile. Letting her know that she hasn't scared me away or anything, I'm just not ready yet. She shakes her head in understanding.

* * *

><p>After having lunch, we're back at Ashley's house, now laying on her bed watching T.V. Ashley's house is amazing by the way. They have 10 bedrooms, 6 baths, a massive pool and even a movie theater. Must be nice.<p>

"Let's play a game." Ashley said randomly, sitting up from the bed.

"Okay." I replied doing the same. "What kinda game?" I ask as she turns off the T.V and tosses the remote on the floor.

"21 questions." She replies.

I cock my head to the side and smile. "Seriously?"

"We've been hanging out for a while now and I realize that I really don't know all that much about you." She says moving closer to me and my heart beat picks up.

"Okay."

"So you wanna start, or should I?" She asks, smiling.

"You go ahead." I reply, wishing I would have chosen to go first. I'm scared of what she might ask.

"What's your favorite color?" Oh this isn't bad.

"Red." I reply. She makes a yuck face then says my turn. I couldn't think of anything so I asked the same question.

"Well, it used to be purple but I've fallen in love with the color blue." She says looking into my _blue_ eyes. I look away feeling the blush spread across my cheeks.

"Your turn." I tell her and she puts a finger on her chin, thinking of the next question. That went off for almost an hour—us basically asking each other the same questions finding out each others favorite foods, movies, TV shows, etc.

Ashley's favorite movie is _The Notebook_ and her favorite TV show is _Phineas & Ferb_, how cute is she?

We were on question twenty when things became a little less trivial.

"Why are you still so nervous around me?" She asks, taking hold of my hand—which was clammy as usual when I was around her. We're laying down on her bed now, shoulder to shoulder. We've been this way for the past few questions.

I don't say anything so she sits up—still holding my hand.

"Spencer?" She questions. I could tell she was trying to read me. I wished she wouldn't. If she could read my mind she would know that I'm dying right now. I'm falling for her and I have a boyfriend, but all I can think about is kissing her, being intimate with her. Which I'd imagined sometimes when I was with Aiden. Does imagining being with a girl, make me gay? I hated that word, and my mother hated gays. I remember one time she said that a male nurse at the hospital she worked at was gay and how her mother always told her that gay stood for 'got AIDS yet?' It made me think, is that how she would see me? Would she see me at all, once I came out? If I ever came out.

"Ashley..." I trail off, gathering my thoughts.

"Yeah?" She says as I sit up and get off the bed shaking my head. "Spencer, I'm sorry I shouldn't have gone there." She says quickly joining me on her feet.

"It's not that." I say turning around to meet her gaze. She looked concerned, scared like maybe she'd said the wrong thing. She hadn't. Truth is, she'd said all the right things. Today was perfect. Better than any day I've ever had with Aiden.

"Then what is it?" She asks, as my gaze falls to the floor.

"I..." I start, feeling the tears building in my eyes.

"Spencer?" She lifts my chin so I'm looking at her, noticing the tears in my eyes. "What's wrong, Spence? Talk to me please?" She begs, moving closer to me.

"I'm with Aiden." I say flatly. Reminding myself of the fact.

"I know." She says looking down.

"But, I wanna kiss you so bad." I finally say, releasing a breath I didn't know I was even holding.

She looks back up at me, studying me, before saying. "I want that too." She pauses, sighing. "But, I don't want to while you're still with Aiden." At that moment I knew what I had to do. I had to break up with Aiden. I needed to do this before things—feelings grew deeper.

I sigh, knowing that she's right and say a quick okay.

"I really do like you Spencer, like a lot, but I just don't wanna be that girl, you know?" She says pulling me to sit down on the bed with her. I got what she was saying exactly, and two months ago I wasn't _this_ girl. I shake my head letting her know I understand. She grabs the remote off the floor and we lay back down on her bed and watch TV for some time before I leave to head over to Aidens. Hopefully, I won't chicken out and finally just break up with him.

Hopefully...

* * *

><p><em>I didn't actually plan on posting this until tomorrow but I saw how mad everyone was over the last chapter so I wanted to make you guys a little happier. Hope this helps. Thanks for reading and reviewing.<em>


	10. Chapter 9 I Hate This Part

**Chapter 9**

Of course you probably guessed that last night, when I went over to Aidens, I didn't tell him. It's not that I chickened out... I just didn't feel like it was the right time. But like I said, when is it ever the right time?

The next day at school I felt like I was drowning the whole day. Literally, submerged in one hundred feet of water, unable to swim my way to the surface—the water never ending. Everything was so—fucked up. I was gonna hurt someone I truly did care about. I never wanted Aiden to get hurt. But I realized that if I stayed with him for the sake of just staying with him, I'd be hurting him even more—and myself.

I decided that I needed to tell him. Today. No excuses, no backing out. I needed to do this and I would.

* * *

><p>We're sitting at the lunch table and Aiden is talking to me but I'm not listening. I'm thinking of how I should end things with him. 'I'm falling for Ashley, Aiden.' No, I didn't need to tell him about Ashley just yet. 'I think we're moving in two different directions in our life.' He wouldn't understand. He wouldn't get it.<p>

"Spencer, are you even fucking listening to me?" Aidens harsh words broke me out of my inner thoughts.

I put down the fry I was holding and answered, "Yeah, I'm sorry what were you saying Aiden?"

"What is wrong with you?" He asks, through clenched teeth. Should I tell him now, in front of everyone? I didn't wanna embarrass him.

"It's nothing, Aiden. Can we talk later?" I plead with him, not liking the projected outcome of having this conversation here.

"No, lets fucking talk now, Spencer." He stood up, his voice a little louder—colder.

"Aiden please." I begged. My plea falling on deaf ears.

"Lately you've been starting arguments with me, on purpose and-" He was full out yelling now, drawing attention to our table.

"Aid." I cut him off, trying to reason with him.

"Are you trying to make me break up with you Spencer, is that what you want?" I looked past him, and caught Ashley's eyes. The look of concern on her face, wanting to know if I was okay—that confirmed it for me. I was gay, and I was in love with Ashley. No sense in trying to deny it anymore.

I took my gaze off of Ashley, averting my eyes to Madison who looked worried and nervous for me. I could read her eyes and she was asking me if I wanted help. I shook my head. I looked back at Aiden, he didn't look hurt he just looked angry waiting for my answer.

"Is that what you want, Spencer?" He asks, again. Becoming impatient with my silence. I didn't know if I wanted it to happen this way. I felt like this was the easy way out—getting him to dump me so I could feel better about myself. But I know that I don't love him in that way anymore and I never would. I would never love any guy like that anymore—any person that wasn't Ashley.

"Oh, fuck you Spencer." He said before storming off. I guess he took my silence as a yes. And on some level that's what it was. I didn't want to end things like that so I chased after him, catching Ashley's eyes again, giving her a small smile—letting her know things would be okay from now on. Aiden wouldn't be a factor anymore.

"Aiden, wait up." I yelled after him, as he stormed down the hall. I had to run to catch up with him.

"I don't wanna talk to you, Spencer." He says, turning his back to me, opening his locker.

"Aiden, please. I didn't want it to happen like this." I say as he yanks books outta his locker and shoves them into his back.

"So you do wanna break up?" He asks, choking the words out. I could tell he was about to cry.

"I..." He stops and looks at me. I needed to do this. I sigh and continue. "Yes Aiden, I think we should break up." The expression on his face, breaks my heart. I feel like the most terrible person in the world. I hate myself for hurting him. He wipes the falling tears and shoves two more books in his bag and stomps off without a word. "Where are you going?" I yell after him.

"Somewhere you're not." He yells , before stomping through the quad and off to his car in the parking lot. He screeches out of his parking space and out of the lot. As I enter back into the quad, all eyes are on me. I just broke up with the most popular guy at school. Without Aiden, I was a nobody. I didn't play any sports, I wasn't head cheerleader, I wasn't anything. I realized that my whole high school life has revolved around Aiden. People only respected me because I was with him.-I guess a lot was about to change.

As I sat down at my table next to Madison, everyone turned from me and went back to doing what they were doing. Madison stared at me but didn't say anything. I'm so glad Carmen hadn't come to school today. I didn't feel like dealing with her mixed emotional episodes.

"I'm fine, Madison." I finally tell my best friend.

"Chocolate Ice cream and Dane Cook tonight?" She questioned. Whenever Madison broke up with someone we'd always done this, it became ritual—she had a lot of boyfriends.

"Actually," I smile looking over at Ashley, who hasn't taken her eyes off me. "I think I'm gonna go over to Ashley's tonight." I look back at my best friend who's smiling.

"Okay." She shakes her head in understanding. "Tomorrow night then?" I nod my head yes.

The rest of the day, sucked—putting it lightly. I swear every single girl in school gave me a dirty look. And I heard some freshmen whispering 'oh, that's the girl that broke Aidens heart.' and her friend whispering back, 'He's so dreamy, and he's the captain of two varsity teams. She must be stupid.' Saying the last part a little louder then a whisper as I passed by.

Kids. They need to learn their place.

* * *

><p>Ashley had text me after the incident in the quad and asked if I wanted to come over after school and of course I said yes.<p>

So we're here. Laying on her bed. Both of us on our sides, just looking into each others eyes then she speaks.

"Are you sure you're okay?" She asks for the millionth time since I got here. Her concern is adorable.

"Yes." I say simply, smiling at her.

"Kay, good." She smiles back.

"I feel weird." I admit, all of a sudden.

"Why?" She sits up and looks down at me.

"I don't know." I say sitting up too. "I guess because I've been with Aiden for so long, it feels weird." I shrug.

She looks down and says, "Do you regret it?" Hurt evident in her voice. She thinks I regret leaving him for her... I don't.

"No." I assure her, lifting her chin so our eyes meet. "Not for a second." I smile. She gives me a weak smile and I can tell she's still not sure.

"I just don't want you to feel like you made a mistake, leaving him." She pauses, turning from me. "Like this is a mistake." She adds.

"Ashley." I say and she turns to look at me. "I knew it from the moment that we met." I smile, quoting the lyrics to the song she wrote for me. "There's not a doubt in my mind." I say and she hugs me. Her embrace feels so good. Needed. We both pull back slowly, our cheeks touching.

I knew what was coming next, I didn't know that I would be the one to initiate it. I leaned forward, dying in anticipation as our lips got closer. My breath hitched as our lips touched—electric. My heart was pounding and I'm sure she could feel my pulse through my lips.

The kiss didn't last long, a few seconds maybe. As we pulled back, she opened her eyes and looked at me and I felt it. I knew it that moment that everything I was feeling was real. I loved her—more than I ever loved Aiden—loved anybody. I opened my mouth to speak but the words wouldn't come out. I needed to tell her, let her know how I was feeling. Let it all out, but my mouth wouldn't cooperate with my mind.

She gave a look, studying me—reading me. Understanding me. Something I feel Aiden never did—understand me that is. She smiled before saying, "I love you, too." My heart fluttered. Was I really that easy to read. It didn't matter. I smiled and kissed her again. Relieved that she felt what I was feeling too. After just two months, I never imagined I would feel so strongly about her.

* * *

><p><em>Soooo... The next update won't be until Wednesday or Thursday. I hope that isn't too long for you guys. I know what you're thinking... How can they be in love and they haven't known each other that long but remember over two months have passed. I hope this chapter was a little better for you guys, no more Spaiden... YAY! As always, thanks for the comments!<em>


	11. Chapter 10 How To Love

**Chapter 10**

"Spencer, Spencer wake up you have company." My mom shakes me from my slumber. A small smile creeps onto my lips as I replay the events from last night. She'd said she loved me, and after only two months of knowing this girl—I knew I loved her too.

"Mom, go away." I say, turning over so that my back is facing her. But she doesn't leave.

"Aiden is downstairs honey." I shot up and looked at her. Making sure I heard her correctly.

"Who's downstairs?" I ask, my voice strained, I look at the alarm clock at it's 6:45am. Seriously?

"Aiden, honey." She says again, confusion spreading across her face. I didn't get what he could possibly want.

"Okay, mom." I say getting off the bed. "Could you tell him I'll be down in a sec?"

"Sure honey." She says leaving my room. I freshen up then head downstairs to see Aiden sitting on the couch and my mom in the kitchen making breakfast.

"Aiden." I say, and his head jerks around. He looks mad at me still—and I can't say I blame him.

"Are you leaving honey?" My mom yells from the kitchen. "Cause I'm making breakfast." She adds.

I look at Aiden who averts his gaze and yell a quick no to my mom.

"Why are you h-"

"I need to get my stuff outta your car and I think my Varsity jacket is in your room." He tells me with a mixture of hurt and anger in his voice, never looking at me.

"Okay, that's fine." I understand his pain, it's the same pain I feel everyday when I think about how I hurt him and how I may never be accepted by my parents. So I know what he's feeling right now. I go and grab my keys off the counter in the kitchen and toss them to him. "You can get your stuff, while I go find your jacket." I tell him and he leaves without responding. I go up to my room and search through my closets for his jacket and find it on my shelf.

As I turn around to head back down the steps Aiden is standing there with my keys in his hand. We exchange my keys for his jacket and then tries to practically bolt out of my room. I run and block the door so he couldn't leave. I wanted to be his friend again, I wanted the Aiden that I meet 10 years ago back.

"Please." I beg him as he tries to move me out of the way.

"Move Spencer." He spits out, trying to walk past me but I won't budge. He was gonna listen to what I had to say, whether he wanted to or not.

"Aiden, I'm sorry." He scoffs and I realize how tired he must be of hearing that. "I really am, Aiden. I never meant for things to happen like this. It wasn't supposed to be this way." His face softens and I know he's listening.

"I just don't get what I did wrong, Spencer." He says backing up from me as I close my door.

"You didn't do anything, Aide. I just..." I pause as I sit down on my bed and he joins me. There's so much pain in his face. It hurts to know I hurt him so bad. "I felt like we were moving in two different directions." I sigh, knowing he probably wouldn't understand what I meant.

"So then, if you felt that way, did you make love to me Spence?" I knew the question was coming. I just didn't have an answer for it. I've asked myself that, many times. I guess, deep down, I felt like maybe sleeping with him would erase the feelings I had for Ashley. Make everything back normal—before she showed up. But if anything, it showed me that I wanted her, craved her, needed her.

"I don't know." I tell him and he drops his head. I drop down on my knees in front of him. I've never seen him like this—so vulnerable. "I love you, Aiden. I will always love you. Just not in that way anymore." He looks up at me, meeting my eyes.

"I'll never stop loving you, Spence." He says placing a hand on my cheek. And without another word he gets up and walks out.

I'm not sure if that made me feel better or worse.

I decide to go ahead and get ready for school. After getting ready I head down to eat breakfast.

"Sweetie, your father and I probably won't be home until after midnight tonight." She pauses, grabbing her purse off the counter and rifles through it. "Order out for dinner." She says handing me a twenty.

"Okay, mom." I say, taking another bite outta my pancake.

"Kay, sweetie." She kisses my forehead. "Hurry up so you're not late for school." She grabs her bag off the counter.

"Okay." I say with a mouth full of pancake as she leaves. I finish up my food and head upstairs to grab my phone and bag when my phone rings. I immediately smile at the name that pops up.

"Hey." I answer walking down the steps and out the front door.

"Hey baby." She says and my heart flutters. "What'cha doing?"

"Leaving for school." I tell her as I make my way to my car.

"How about you come over here instead." She says cutely.

"You mean ditch school?" I ask a little surprised at her request.

"Yeah. Let's have an us day." She pauses and I can hear the smile in her voice as she says, "Like as a real couple." She finishes and I can't control the smile the creeps onto my face.

"I think you're crazy." I tell her and she giggles.

"So does that mean you're coming?" She asks, as I back out of the driveway and drive the opposite direction of the school.

"Of course. I'm on my way."

"Okay, hurry cause I miss you." She says sweetly and hangs up.

* * *

><p>As I pull into Ashley's driveway she's sitting on her car—waiting for me.<p>

How cute is she?

"Hey baby." She says hoping off the car and walking over to me as I get out.

"Hey." I smile and she kisses me.

"I missed you so much." She says pulling back—I miss her lips already.

"I missed you too." I tell her, pulling her back into a kiss.

"I wanna take you to the pier." She says into my lips.

"Okay." I say simply, reconnecting our lips. I could kiss her forever.

"But you would have to give me my lips back first." I can feel her smile into my lips. I pull back and smile a sorry. "Not that I couldn't kiss you all day." She says placing another barely there kiss on my lips before pulling me in the direction of her car and opening my door for me. I smile at her gesture as she runs around and takes her seat on the drivers side.

* * *

><p>"I am not riding the Ferris Wheel, Spencer." Ashley tells me as we walk, well I'm walking—she's dragging, towards the Ferris Wheel.<p>

"But it's my fav." I pout, giving her my best puppy dog eyes.

"I'mreallyscaredofheights." Ashley rushes out and I didn't understand a word of it.

"What?" I say, confusion evident on my face. "I speak English." I say slowly so she gets my drift.

"I'm really scared of heights, okay? You happy now Spencer?" She says looking down, playing with her fingers. Aw, she's embarrassed.

I left her chin, "It's okay baby." I say with a smile. "We don't have to go on."

"But you really want to."

"It's fine. It's no big deal." I tell her, grabbing her hand and squeezing it. "Let's just do something else." I say pulling her towards the games. We stop in front of a shooting game. "Win me a teddy bear?"

She smirks before saying, "Oh, I got this."

Ashley has been trying now for about 15 minutes to win this game—to no avail. She's getting upset and I can tell that she doesn't plan on stopping until she wins that giant Winnie The Pooh for me. Which is so incredibly cute.

"Ashley it's fine." I tell her as she pays the attendant guy another five dollars.

"No." She says harshly, whipping her head around to look at me. "We are not leaving until I win you the bear you want." She says slowly, before turning back to the game and missing yet again.

"Uh... You know you could just buy the bear." The game attendant tells Ashley and quickly realizes that it was a bad idea. Aw. Poor kid.

"Do I look like I want to buy her the freaking bear?" She yells at the boy and he puts his head down. I feel so bad for him. It's not his fault Ashley sucks at this game.

"Ashley." I interject before she could ream the poor boy out anymore. "How about..." I pause as she turns to face me then continue, "Can I try?"

She looks at the gun, then the attendant, then back me before sighing a 'fine' and handing me the gun. She pays the attendant another five dollars and I take a shot at the golf ball sitting on top of the glass bottle and knock it off on the first try.

"Seriously?" Her head whips around to look at me and I give her a coy smile and mouth a sorry. The attendant smiles then grabs the giant Winnie The Pooh off the top rack.

"Here you go ma'lady." The attendant hands me the bear and gets a glare from Ashley. I better get her away from him before she jumps over the counter and starts beating him repeatedly.

"That whole time you let me look like a fool?" She says as we starts walking away. She's not mad or anything. I think she was more surprised than anything.

"I'm not the athletic type." I shrug and continue, "So I didn't think I would get it. Let alone, on the first try." I finish as she interlocks her fingers in mines. On reflex, I snatch my hand away and she gives me a puzzled look. I wasn't sure why I did it. Maybe I'm not ready to be that out. With the whole world looking down on me—judging me.

"Did I do something wrong?" She asks, obviously hurt by actions.

"No." I say looking down suddenly finding the ground interesting.

"Then what's the problem?" She asks, lifting my chin.

"I just..." I pause. I need to choose my words carefully, cause I don't want Ashley to think that I'm not into being with her. I'm just not into being so out yet. You know what I mean? "It's nothing." I smile, reassuring her. This is something we can address another time. I don't want to ruin our perfect day.

"Okay." She says, probably not wanting to push me about it anymore. "You ready to go? I'm beat." She says taking the teddy bear out of my hands. I mentally thank her because that thing was so heavy. I look down at my watch and it's three o'clock. I can't believe we spent the whole morning and afternoon just hanging out at the pier. I've never skipped school before. Not in my 13 years, counting kindergarten, of attending it.

"Yeah." I say and we make our way back to her car.

* * *

><p>"So have you thought of what you wanna do for your birthday, Spence." We're in her room watching T.V. It's amazing how something so simple as just hanging out in her room could constitute as a continuation of one of the best days I've ever had.<p>

"Nah, not really." I say, not taking my eyes off the T.V.

She jumps up and says, "What! Are you serious? You're turning 18 Spence, this is a big deal." I look over at her and smile at her enthusiasm over _my_ birthday.

"It's not really a big deal." I say casually, turning my head to focus back on the T.V.

"Are you crazy? No girlfriend of mine is gonna sit around and do nothing for her birthday. Nope, not happening." She says pulling me up off the bed.

"Uuuuugh." I whine. I was so comfy. "You know..." I start, as she wraps her arms around me. "You technically never asked me to be your girlfriend." I smile as she brings our lips together in a chaste kiss.

"Yes, I did." She rolls her eyes in her head as if she was trying to recall the memory.

"Uh, no you didn't."

"_Okay_." She drags out the word, dropping down on one knee.

Um, what the hell?

"Spencer Carlin," she says my name and my breath hitches. She grabs my hand before continuing. "Will you make me the happiest girl on earth and be my girlfriend?" She finishes, looking up expectantly at me. Hmm... I think I'm gonna play with her for a bit.

"No." I say simply, making sure to keep my face expressionless to sell my answer. Deep down inside I'm screaming, hell yes are you crazy?

"What do you mean, no?" She says letting go of my hand and standing up.

"I mean that, I don't know if I'm ready yet." I say and I can see her face fall.

"Did I do something? Is this about me trying to hold your hand at the pier cause if it is Spencer, then I'm so sorry and I won't ever do it again but if you-" I cut her off with my lips, causing her breath to hictch.

I pull back and she looks confused. Okay games over. "I would love to be your girlfriend, Ashley." I say and her lips curl up into a smile.

"You're a jerk you know that?" She says as I place another kiss on her forehead then her nose then her lips again.

"I'm sorry." I say simply as my mind travels to other things. Like, kissing Ashley. Duh. Keep up here. "I couldn't resist." I say reconnecting our lips again. The kiss quickly turns heated as she lays me back on the bed, never disconnecting our lips.

_There's a fire, burning in my heart, it's reaching a fever pitch and it's bringing me out the dark._

I have no clue why Adele lyrics wanna randomly be in my head while I'm making out with my incredibly hot girlfriend.

_Anyway._.. Ashley is kissing me all over and I'm having a hard time breathing. She kisses my neck, then my collarbone, then rolls her tongue back up to my ear and whispers, "Can I touch you?" She brings her hand down to my jean zipper and rests it there.

I immediately feel unwary. This was all new for me. A few months ago, I would have never imagined myself with a girl, and now this. This was happening—it was happening all too fast.

"I..." I start, suddenly my throat is dry. She stops her assault on my neck and lifts her head to look down at me. She must have seen the worry on my face cause she rolls off of me and sighs.

"I'm sorry." I say, for no reason in particular other than the fact that it sounds like the right thing to say in this situation.

"No." She says as I join her sitting up and scoot up on the edge of the bed beside her. "I'm sorry." She looks at me and continues, "I shouldn't have been trying to move so fast. I know this is all really new to you and it's not fair of me to try and make you move so quickly." She says grabbing my hand.

"I'm sorry." I say again, not knowing what else to say.

"It's okay, Spencer. You don't have to apologize. You never have to apologize for not being ready." She stops and catches my eyes. "It'll happen, when it's supposed to happen." I smile. "Til then, I'm happy to wait for you." I sigh a content sigh and kiss her.

Never have things ever felt so perfect in my life.

* * *

><p><em>Soooo I knew I said Wednesday but I didn't want to keep you guys waiting too long so I just put it out today. I hope you guys liked it! If you did... tell me about it... if you didn't... tell me about that too. :) The support once again has been beyond amazing. I love you all so much for reading and reviewing. Next update will be Friday morning. <em>


	12. Chapter 11 It's My Birthday

**Chapter 11**

It's been a week since I broke up with Aiden. Things are, civil between us. I mean he's still mad at me—of course, but he's talking to me now, at least. I don't think, there has ever been a time in my life that I was more happy. And of course, Ashley is the cause of that. The days since we kissed, have been nothing short of amazing. Hanging out almost everyday, she even came over and hung with me and Madison for our post break up ritual, which I really didn't need because Ashley was more than enough to help me get over Aiden.

Today is my 18th birthday and to say that I'm less than excited would be an understatement. I've never really made a big deal about my birthday. It's not like my parents are ever around to celebrate it with me. Their work consumes them.

"Spencer wake up honey." My mom shakes me. I hope this is not going to become a morning ritual.

"Uggggh. Moooom." I whine and open one eye. I'm sure it's some absurd time like 5:30 am or something. I use that one eye to glance over at my alarm clock that reads 5:45am. Fuck my life.

"Honey, wake up. Your father and I have to go to work."

"Fine." I say, sitting up on my bed finally opening both eyes. My mom and dad are standing beside my bed and my dad is holding a tray of all my favorite breakfast foods.

"Happy birthday, sweetie." My parents say in unison, as my dad places the tray on the bed. In all my 18 years of living I can only remember one time that my parents ever got me anything for my birthday, it was my 8th birthday and I begged for a barbie dream house. They were expensive, like 200 hundred bucks and I begged almost the whole year for it. So why all of a sudden they wanna be nice and do this for me?

"Is everything okay?" They look at each other then back at me and laugh.

"Of course sweetie, why wouldn't they be?" Um, I don't know, cause you guys are acting like parents.

"No reason." I smile then pick up a piece of bacon off the tray. Mmm.

"Okay honey, we have to go." My mom says, kissing me on the forehead. "We'll do dinner this weekend." She says as my dad leans down and kisses my forehead too.

"Love you, honey. Happy birthday." My dad smiles and exits, my mom follows but stops in the doorway.

"Thanks, dad." I smile.

"Oh, and I guess it would be okay if you invited Aiden to dinner sweetie. I guess, if you plan on being with him forever, I should probably get to know him." Oh great, _now_ she wants to get to know him.

"Okay mom." I say, not wanting to get into that with her right now.

"There's money downstairs on the counter, for the week." She adds then leaves.

I practically devour all the food on the tray in record time. Eggs, bacon, pancakes, waffles, and grits. I'm a fat ass, I know. _It's my birthday, I'll be fat if I want to._ After eating I showered and got dressed for school. Sucks that my birthday is on a Monday. So I have school. I mean, I didn't have plans or anything, but I would have liked to have just chilled with Ashley.

Speaking of Ashley, she says she has me a gift for my birthday—she was so excited about it. I assured her that a gift was not necessary, but she insisted.

As I was heading out the door for school, after gabbing the hundred my mom left on the counter for me, my phone rang and I smiled at the name on my caller ID.

"Hey you." I answer.

"Good morning, birthday girl." I could hear her smiling through the phone. "Are you excited?"

"About what?" I ask getting in my car.

"Getting my birthday gift, crazy." She says cutely and I smile wider.

"I told you that you didn't have to get me anything, Ashley." I say and she scoffs.

"Right." She says simply as I pull off and head to school. "Like I wouldn't get you anything, Carlin. Don't be crazy. How long before you get to school cause I miss your beautiful face." She giggles.

"I just left, I'll be there in ten and I'm starting to think you're only with me for my looks, Ms. Davies." I joke.

"Damn, you caught me." I fake offense. "You know I'm just joking baby. I love you for many different reasons, one being your looks though, I can't lie." She laughs and I join in.

"I guess that's fine. But later, I need to hear all these reasons."

"No problem, Carlin."

"I think I'm gonna need you to stop calling me Carlin." I joke. I actually love it when she calls me that.

"But..." She whines. "I like it." She says simply and I laugh.

"I think baby would be more suitable." I say as I pull into the school parking lot.

"I think you may be right, _baby_." She says and my stomach flutters. I really wish it would stop doing that. "Are you at school yet?"

"Yep, just pulled up." I say as I put the car in park. I reach in the backseat to grab my bag and when I turn around Ashley is standing in front of my car, grinning widely with the phone to her ear.

"Have you been waiting this whole time for me?" I say into the phone she smiles wider—if possible.

"Nope. I just got here too." I smile back, knowing that she's lying. Of course we get into a staring/smiling match. If we didn't, we wouldn't be us. "You can hang up now." She says taking the phone from ear and walking to the drivers side, opening the door for me. "I missed you." She says holding out her hand for me to take, helping me out the car.

"I missed you, too." I say as she pulls me into a hug. We pull back both still smiling. I look around the parking lot and see that there's only a few students here, and they are all the way over by the lockers. I grab Ashley's face and pull her into a kiss. It didn't last long but I missed her lips—I needed to feel hers on mine.

"What was that for?" She asks, looking around.

"For being you." I smile and hug her again.

"Ooook." She says grabbing my hand escorting me to her car. "But, I thought we agreed on not being so out at school?" She says opening the back car door. Technically, I came up with the policy and _she_agreed. I just don't want everyone in my business, you know?

"I know, I just couldn't resist your lips." I say as she grabs a bag from her backseat and hands it to me. "What's this?" I question, looking between her and the bag.

"Just open it." She smiles. I reach down in the bag and pull out a white T-shirt that says "Number One Fan' in red and black letters.

"What's this?" I ask, holding up the shirt.

"Present número uno." She says, then takes the bag from me and throws in back in her car. I'm confused.

"Who's number one fan am I, exactly?" She smirks and ignores my question, shutting her door and pulling me towards the school.

"You'll see." She says simply. "So, I'll see you later." She grabs my hand and squeezes it and I fight the urge to kiss her.

"Okay." I barely whisper as my gaze fixes on her lips.

"Spencer." She leans in and whispers in my ear. "If you don't stop staring at me like an animal in heat..." She pauses and giggles seductively. "Everyone will know that you love me." She pulls back biting on her bottom lip, making me want her that much more.

"I...I should...I'm gonna go." I stutter out. "Thank you for walking me to class." I smile then scurry off into my class. I couldn't look at her for another second or I would have given into temptation. My phone buzzes as I take my sit in the back of the classroom.

_'I wanted to kiss you, too.'_ Ashley texts and I smile.

_'I feel like a 13 year old boy, when I'm around you.'_ I text back.

_'I don't know if that's a good thing, or a bad one. :P' _She texts back making me laugh.

_'I guess it could constitute as a little of both.'_ I text as students start to enter the class.

_'Good to know. Now, pay attention in class before I have to come discipline you.'_

_'Is that a promise?' _I smirk at my reply.

_'Spencer Carlin.'_ Is all she texts back but I know what she means, and I can hear her tone in the text.

_'Okay, okay. I'm gonna pay attention now. But I'm not gonna promise to like it.'_ I texts as Madison comes into class and sits down beside me. "Hey." I greet her and she says hi back.

_'I'll see you after school.'_ I read.

_'What happened to lunch and last period?'_ I reply back. She's been sitting at lunch with Madison and I for the past week. Aiden, at first, moved to a different table with his jock friends and Carmen—who seems to hate me now by the way. I don't know, but I think it may be about the whole break up with Aiden and I. I really couldn't tell you for sure cause she's been acting weird for a couple of months now.

_'Working on part three of your birthday gift.'_ She texts back and I smile.

"You must be texting, Ashley?" Madison asks smiling, and I shake my head. "Of course." We both laugh. "So what are you two doing for your birthday, birthday girl?" She asks, as I text Ashley back _'Oh, okay. :('_

"I don't know. Probably just gonna hang out at her house." I tell Madison, as I receive a text. I look down expecting it to be Ashley but it was a text from Aiden, telling me happy birthday. How sweet. Madison texted me at 12:01am last night but Ashley beat everyone calling me at exactly midnight wishing me a happy birthday in her sleepy voice. It was the cutest thing ever, cause she clearly set her alarm clock to wake up and tell me that.

"I doubt that." Madison smiles and grabs a book out of her bag.

"Do you know something, Duarte?" I half yell at her, and half the class turns around and looks at me. "If Ashley said something you better tell me!" I say a little lower this time.

She laughs before saying, "I don't know anything." And opens her book. I know she's lying. But I also know, if Ashley did tell her anything, she's not gonna tell me. She's good at keeping secrets.

"Fine." I say as I receive another text.

_'I promise it'll be worth it. You won't see me for the rest of the day, I got my dad to write me a note to miss every class after lunch so I'm leaving after third.'_ It reads. Damn her. I like having lunch with her and having staring contest in Lit. Boo. Now what am I supposed to do for the rest of the day? I don't even bother texting back. Yup, I'm bitter. _And?_

"You'll love it." Madison says suddenly. Not even looking up from her. See, I knew she was lying!

"Ugh, tell me, tell me, tell me!" I whine and my best friend laughs at me.

"I'm not telling you Spence, so you can just forget it. I promised Ashley I wouldn't." She retorts and I know that's the end of that. I sulk in my seat. What? _It's my birthday, I can sulk if I want to. _"Oh, I meant to tell you this yesterday." She says looking up at me. "Carmen was asking me questions about you and Ashley yesterday. She was being really weird. I didn't tell her anything but she was really bugging out, so just be careful."

"You think I should tell her?"

She sighs and closes her book. "I don't know Spence. Carmen, she's..." She pauses, scanning my face. I really feel bad about hiding this from Carmen, I mean she is or was or I don't know, one of my good friends. If Ashley was a guy, we'd be gossiping about it right now. "If you feel like you're ready for that Spence, then tell her." Madison finishes, with a strained smile. I know she knows more about this Carmen situation then she's letting on.

The problem is, that I know she would never tell me—she's the best at keeping secrets, remember?

"Okay." I say simply as Mr. Fitz walks into the class and asks us to all take our seats and settle down.

* * *

><p>I missed Ashley like crazy all day today. She needs to not ever skip classes again. It was horrible. On another note, Carmen didn't come to school today. She's been missing first period a lot lately, like she's avoiding me, but she's never missed the whole day.<p>

After school I got a call from Ashley telling me to meet her at her dad's record label at eight, so I went home and changed, did my homework, then meet her there. I thought it would be appropriate to wear the T-shirt she bought me so I'm in that and some black skinny jeans with my red/white Bandit Supra's on.

As I made my way into the building I realized no one was there. I went through the double doors to find a smiling Ashley standing next to. Oh. My. God. Sara Bareilles. Ashley walks over to me cause clearly I'm shell shocked and can't move.

"Hey baby." She greets me, kissing me. I'm still in shock, so I can' talk. "Oook." She smiles and leads me to a chair and sits me down. Like she literally had to bend my knees and force me into the chair. Don't judge. Sara Bareilles, just so happens to be my favorite artist. I'm allowed to act this way.

"Hello, Spencer." Sara Bareilles says smiling at me. I wave stupidly. Ugh, mental note to slap myself later. "Um, Ashley here told me that you're my number one fan." She pauses looking at my shirt. "And I'm guessing from your shirt she wasn't lying." She smiles then continues, "So me and my band here wanted to wish you a happy birthday and sing you a song. Would that be okay with you Spencer?" She asks, and I nod my head. "Great." She says turning back to her band. Ashley pulls up a chair and sits down next to me.

"Gift número dos" She says holding up two fingers smiling. I stare at her, for a while before mouthing a thank you as Sara starts to play. She grabs my hand and scoots closer to me.

_There's too many things that I haven't done yet  
>Too many sunsets<br>I haven't seen  
>You can't waste the day wishing it'd slow down<br>You would've thought by now  
>I'd have learned something<em>

_I made up my mind when I was a young girl_  
><em>I've been given this one world<em>  
><em>I won't worry it away<em>  
><em>But now and again I lose sight of the good life<em>  
><em>I get stuck in a low light<em>  
><em>But then Love comes in<em>

Ashley looks at me when Sara sings this part and I smile wide.

_How far do I have to go to get to you_  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>How far do I have to go to get to you<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>But send me the miles and I'll be happy to, follow you, Love<em>

_I do what I can wherever I end up_  
><em>To keep giving my good love<em>  
><em>And spreading it around<em>  
><em>Cause I've had my fair share of take care and goodbyes<em>  
><em>I've learned how to cry<em>  
><em>And I'm better for that<em>

_Sing how far do I have to go to get to you_  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>How far do I have to go to get to you<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>Send me the miles and I'll be happy to<em>  
><em>Follow you Love<em>

_Read a letter today and I'm in a blue mood_  
><em>Wishing that blue would just carry me away<em>  
><em>I've been talking to God don't know<em>  
><em>If it's helping or not<em>  
><em>But surely something has got to got to got to give<em>  
><em>Cause I can't keep waiting to live<em>

_How far do I have to go to get to you_  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>How far do I have to go to get to you<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>But send me the miles and I'll be happy to yeah<em>  
><em>How far do I have to go to get to you<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>How far do I have to go to get to you<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>Been talking to God don't know if it's helping or not<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>How far do I have to go to get to you<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>Many the miles<em>  
><em>Oh send me the miles and I'll be happy to<em>  
><em>Follow you Love<em>

_There's too many things I haven't done yet_  
><em>Too many sunsets I haven't seen<em>

Ashley and I both clap as Sara Bareilles finishes singing and I'm still in shock at what just happened.

"I hope you enjoyed it Spencer, Ashley went through a lot to get me here." Sara and Ashley share a look then Ashley looks back at me.

"I really did." I say staring back at Ashley. "Thank you so much." I say to both of them really.

"You're welcome." Ashley smiles.

"This has by far, been the best birthday ever." I tell her and she scrunches her eyebrows.

"The night's not over, Spence." She says grabbing my hand. "Time for gift, número tres. Thanks again Sara." She hugs her and then drags me to the elevator. We go up 10 more floors until we reach the roof of the building. When we step out of the elevator, I couldn't believe my eyes, Ashley had set up a candle light dinner, with a dozen roses waiting for me on the table and Oh. My. God. I say as I look to my left and see The Script smiling at me. I think I almost fainted cause Ashley's arms are not wrapped tightly around me holding me up. "Spence, you ok?" She asks, smiling at me.

I swallow and blink my eyes a few times, making sure I wasn't dreaming before answering, "Fine." I smile weakly.

"Good. Come on then." She says escorting me to my chair at the table. "Hey Danny." Ashley greets the lead singer, like she's known him all her life. Must be nice. "This is my girlfriend Spencer." She says looking back at me.

"Hello, nice to meet you Spencer." Him and the rest of the band waves at me. "Ashley here says you're our number one fan, so we wanted to sing a little song for you on your birthday. I mean, it's the least we can do for our number one fan." He smiles as he reads over my shirt.

"Um. Thanks." I croak out. I'm not saying anything else. I don't trust my vocal chords right now.

"So, we heard your favorite song is the one we're gonna play. We hope that's okay?" He raises an eyebrow and I nod my head. "Good." He says before the drummer counts off and they start playing. Ashley joins me at the table.

She smiles at me and I wanna tell her something but like I said, I don't trust my vocal chords right now to not make me sound like a 11 year old boy—going through puberty.

_Going Back to the corner where I first saw you  
>Gonna camp in my sleeping bag I'm not gonna move<br>Got some words on cardboard, got your picture in my hand  
>Saying, "If you see this girl can you tell her where I am? "<em>

_Some try to hand me money, they don't understand_  
><em>I'm not broke I'm just a broken hearted man<em>  
><em>I know it makes no sense but what else can I do<em>  
><em>How can I move on when I'm still in love with you<em>

_'Cause if one day you wake up and find that you're missing me_  
><em>And your heart starts to wonder where on this earth I could be<em>  
><em>Thinkin maybe you'll come back here to the place that we'd meet<em>  
><em>And you'll see me waiting for you on the corner of the street<em>  
><em>So I'm not moving, I'm not moving<em>

"Spencer." Ashley turns and looks at me.

"Hmm." I say not taking my eyes off of the Script.

"I love you." This gets me to turn and look at her. She smiles.

"I love you too." I smile back.

_Policeman says, "Son you can't stay here"_  
><em>I said, "There's someone I'm waiting for if it's a day, a month, a year"<em>  
><em>Gotta stand my ground even if it rains or snows<em>  
><em>If she changes her mind this is the first place she will go<em>

"I love you and..." She continues as the band continues to play. "You make the happiest I've been in a long time." She says taking a long black box from under a napkin on the table and hands it to me.

_'Cause If one day you wake up and find that you're missing me_  
><em>And your heart starts to wonder where on this earth I could be<em>  
><em>Thinking maybe you'll come back here to the place that we'd meet<em>  
><em>And you'll see me waiting for you on our corner of the street<em>  
><em>So I'm not moving, I'm not moving,<em>  
><em>I'm not moving, I'm not moving<em>

I stare at the box, listening to the music—letting it all soak in.

_People talk about the guy that's waiting on a girl  
>There are no holes in his shoes but a big hole in his world<br>_

"Are you gonna open it Spence?" She asks, and grabs my hand. I smile then pull my hand away to open the box. A gold necklace with a half heart on it lies inside. "I know it's cliché and I said that I would never be cliché when it comes to our relationship. But I couldn't help myself." She says as I stare at the necklace in the box. "I have the other half." She adds, lifting the necklace out from under her shirt. "You're the other half of me Spencer."

_Maybe I'll get famous as the man who can't be moved  
>Maybe you won't mean to but you'll see me on the news<br>And you'll come running to the corner  
>'Cause you'll know it's just for you<br>I'm the man who can't be moved  
><em>

"You don't like it do you? Oh God, you hate it!" She says trying to take the box from my hands.

"No, I love it." I say finally looking up at her. "I love you." She smiles brightly.

"I love you, too, Spencer."

_Cause If one day you wake up and find that you're missing me  
>And your heart starts to wonder where on this earth I could be<br>Thinking maybe you'll come back here to the place that we'd meet  
>And you'll see me waiting for you on our corner of the street<br>So I'm not moving, I'm not moving,  
>I'm not moving, I'm not moving<em>

_Going back to the corner where I first saw you_  
><em>Gonna camp in my sleeping bag, I'm not gonna move<em>

She gets up and makes her way over to me and kisses me as the song ends. "Here, let me put it on for you." She says taking the necklace from the box and putting it around my neck. Placing a kiss on the spot where she fastened it. "I have one more surprise for you." She says walking from behind me and over to The Script.

"Ashley, I don't want anything else." I tell her. She's already gotten me more than I ever imagined she would.

"Just one more thing." She says, then whispers something in Danny's ear. He smiles at her then back at me then tells his band something as Ashley pulls a mic in front of her and clears her throat. Aw. She's gonna sing for me again. "Um, Spence, I wrote this like a week ago and I've been dying to sing it to you but it's a duet so Danny and this amazing here." She stops waving her hand acknowledging the band before continuing. "Are gonna help me. I hope you like it." She says then the band starts to play.

Ashley starts singing...

_I remember what you wore on the first day  
>You came into my life and I thought hey<br>you know, this could be something_

_'Cause everything you do and words you say_  
><em>You know that it all takes my breath away<em>  
><em>And now I'm left with nothing<em>

They both sing blending together perfectly.

_So maybe it's true that I can't live without you_  
><em>And maybe two is better than one<em>  
><em>But there's so much time to figure out the rest of my life<em>  
><em>And you've already got me coming undone<em>  
><em>And I'm thinking two is better than one<em>

Danny sings the next part.

_I remember every look upon your face  
>The way you roll your eyes, the way you taste<br>You make it hard for breathing_

Then Ashley sings, looking straight into my eyes.

_'Cause when I close my eyes and drift away_  
><em>I think of you and everything's okay<em>  
><em>I'm finally now believing<em>

They both sing the chorus again and Ashley starts walking towards me...

_That maybe it's true that I can't live without you  
>And maybe two is better than one<br>But there's so much time to figure out the rest of my life  
>And you've already got me coming undone<br>And I'm thinking two is better than one  
>Yeah, yeah<br>_

Ashley sings as she reaches me. She kneels down in front of me.

_I remember what you wore on the first day  
>You came into my life and I thought, hey<em>

_Maybe it's true that I can't live without you_  
><em>Maybe two is better than one<em>  
><em>There's so much time to figure out the rest of my life<em>  
><em>And you've already got me coming undone<em>

She sings directly to me. Our faces inches apart and I fight the urge to kiss her.

_And I'm thinking, ooh, I can't live without you_  
><em>'Cause, baby, two is better than one<em>  
><em>There's so much time to figure out the rest of my life<em>  
><em>But I figured out with all that's said and done<em>  
><em>Two is better than one, two is better than one<em>

As the song ends I can't fight the urge anymore and I kiss her. Grabbing the back of her head—my fingers getting lost in her hair. I love this girl.

After we ate dinner she walked me outside and kissed me goodnight. She wanted me to stay over but I insured her that wouldn't be the best idea. I knew that after the day I've had being close to her, alone with her, in her bed... would not be a good idea.

This by far has been the best birthday I ever had!

* * *

><p><em>Soooooo I know I said the next update wouldn't be until Friday morning, but I totally forgot I have surgery on Thursday morning soooo Idk when I'll be able to post after today. Maybe like a week... hopefully not that long. I hope you guys enjoyed this update. Thank you for reading this. Please comment and tell me what you thought! :)<em>

_Songs used: Sara Bareilles- Many The Miles, The Script- The Man Who Can't Be Moved, and Boys Like Girls- Two Is Better Than One_


	13. Chapter 12 Rumor Has It

**Chapter 12**

I woke up the next morning to the sound of Ashley singing. Oh, did I forget to tell you? I made her record herself singing the song she wrote and send it to me. It is now what I hear when she calls. I smile before answering.

"Good morning baby." I answer.

"Good morning. Did I wake you?"

"No, I need to get up now anyways and get ready for school." I say throwing the covers off me and getting out of bed.

"Well... The reason I was calling was because um," She pauses.

"What's wrong, Ash?" I asks concerned.

She sighs before answering, "I missed you." Aw.

"Aw, baby. I missed you too." I say smiling into the phone.

"I feel like I'm being extra needy." She says as I walk into the bathroom.

"Nope. I love it." I say turning on the shower.

"Well, I love you."

"I love you too. I'm gonna shower and I'll call you when I'm leaving for school, kay?"

"Okay." She says and we hang up.

After I shower and get dressed for school, I head downstairs to find my mom in the kitchen cooking breakfast.

"Good morning, honey." She says as I hop up on a stool. "How was your birthday? Did Aiden have a nice night planned out?"

"Actually mom," I start as she places a plate in front of me on the counter with eggs, bacon, and pancakes on it. I take a bite of my pancakes before continuing. "Aiden and I aren't together anymore." I say with a mouth full of food.

She stops cooking and turns around, "Oh honey, I'm sorry what happened?" She asks, like she really cares.

"I broke up with him." I say plainly as I stuff another fork full of pancake in my mouth. "This is so good." I tell my mom and she makes a disgusted face.

"Spence, how many times have I told you about talking with your mouth full?"

"A lot?" I stop chewing and look up at her. She stares at me for a second before smiling.

"So you're fine with the whole Aiden thing?" She questions, taking the pancake out of the pan putting it on a plate and putting the pan in the sink. I nod my head, not to talk with my mouth full.

"Okay." She says simply, grabbing her bag off the counter. "Did you hang out with Madison then?"

I think for a second, wondering if I should lie or not. I mean, what's wrong with me hanging out with Ashley for my birthday? Absolutely nothing. "Um, no. Actually, I hung out with Ashley mom." I say not looking at her.

"Oh, okay. Sweetie." She kisses my cheek. "As long as you weren't alone on your birthday." She wipes lipstick off my cheek and adds, "And don't forget about dinner this weekend with your father, brother and I."

"Man whore didn't even tell me happy birthday." I say, swallowing the food in my mouth.

"Aw I'm sure he has a good reason, sweetie." See even my mom knows he's a whore. "Okay, I'll see you tomorrow sweetie, I'm working until midnight." She says then walks towards the door.

"Kay. Bye mom." I yell as I hear the door shut.

After finishing breakfast I headed to school. As I walk to my locker I see Ashley standing next to it, smiling.

"You know, some people might call this stalking." I joke, as I reach my locker.

"Well, since you're my girlfriend and all," She pauses, grabbing my bag off my shoulder as I open my locker. "I think stalking is okay." She finishes with a smile and I smile back. "So... you had a fun birthday yesterday?" Shes asks, as I close my locker and grabbing the bag from her, shouldering it.

I smile, remembering last nights events before answering, "The best birthday ever." I exclaim, getting a giggle from Ashley.

"Well, I'm just glad that I got to share such an important day with you. I mean, it's not every day that we turn 18 you know?" She says as we reach my class.

"You're the only one that I would have wanted to share it with." I tell her truthfully and she engulfs me in a hug.

"I'm glad to hear that. So, I'll see you at lunch?"

"Of course."

"Kay. I'm gonna order Chinese and have it delivered for me, you and Madison okay?" Aw. How cute is this girl?

"Okay." I say and give her another hug before she rushes off to her class.

I make my way into my class and Madison is already sitting in the back of the class smiling.

"What?" I asks as I approach her. I look down and see I have a text from Ashley. _'I miss you already.'_ It reads. I quickly text back that I miss her more.

"Oh, nothing." She says, smiling even wider. "How was last night?" She asks, as I take my seat.

I sigh. "Only the best night ever." I tell my best friend as I replay last nights events over in my head.

"That's it? That's all you're gonna give me?" Madison jokes. I'm pretty sure she already knows what went down because I'm sure her and Ashley exchanged phone number to discuss my likes and dislikes, and that's why last night was so perfect.

Am I lucky or what? I have a best friend who's super cool and a girlfriend that's super hot. What more could a girl ask for?

"I'll give details later when you come over to my house. You are still coming right?" I asks and her face scrunches up in confusion. "Ugh! I knew you would forget, Mads. It's Glee night. Full out two season marathon of Glee before the new season starts tomorrow."

"Oh yeah."

"Oh yeah? Oh yeah!" I yell out in frustration. "How could you forget Mads?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because you've been so caught up in Ashley lately, I've forgotten all about the plans we made months ago." She says smiling. She's right. Lately, I have been _all _Ashley.

"You're right." I laugh at myself. "But you are still coming right?" I ask and she nods. I miss hanging out with my best friend.

A few minutes later Carmen walks in class and walks right passed me without speaking.

"Hey, Madison." She says, making sure to emphasize Madison's name.

"Hey Carm." Madison replies, looking over and me and shrugging.

I'm so over how Carmen has been acting for the past two months. When I turn around to finally tell her off Mr. Fitz walks in. Fucking great. I think to myself then whip out my phone to text her.

_'What the hell did I do to you, Carmen?'_

_'I don't know. What did you do Spencer?'_ She texts back.

_'You're the one acting like I don't exist anymore. Like our friendship never mattered to you. And I don't even know what I did wrong. What the hell did you even apologize to me for, if you weren't going to change?'_

_'Good question. Why are you hanging out with Davies so much? It's like you two have become best of friends and you don't even care about me and Madison anymore.'_

_'What are you talking about Carmen? Madison and I, hang out. You're the one that's always m.i.a.'_ I texts back and look over at Madison who's looking back between Carmen and I. I roll my eyes and she gets it.

_'Yeah, I'm sure. You still didn't answer my question, Spencer.'_ I could feel the venom spewing from the text.

_'We're really good friends.'_ I text back. I wanna tell Carmen about me and Ashley but the way she's been acting since Ashley came around... I don't know if I should.

_'Right. Friends...'_ Is all she texts back.

_'What is that supposed to mean?' _I feel like she's getting at something. Maybe she already knows.

_'I know what's going on between the two of you Spencer. And you don't know little Ms. My Dads a record producer so I can do whatever the hell I want, as well as you think you do.' _It read. Now was does that mean? Ashley is nothing like that.

_'What are you talking about?'_ I text back and she scoffs behind me. I wait and wait and wait, staring at my phone but she never texts me back. The bell rings for class to be over and before I could approach Carmen about the text she hurries out of class. Ugh. I so don't feel like dealing with this today.

"What was that about?" Madison asks as we pack up of books.

"She said that I don't know Ashley as well as I think I do." I tell Madison.

"Do you know what she means?"

"Not a clue." I say as we make our way out of class.

"Maybe she's just being Carmen." Which Carmen is she being exactly?

"I don't know. She's being weird." I tell my best friend.

"Well, just steer clear of her today." Madison says with this look on her face like she knows something. I know she wouldn't tell me if she did. Damn her and her loyalty to both her best friends.

"Okay. And oh, before I forget. Ashley said she's getting us Chinese for lunch."

"Isn't she sweet?"

"The sweetest." I reply and head off to my next class.

* * *

><p>We're sitting at the table eating lunch. Me in between my best friend and girlfriend.<p>

"I love Glee." Ashley yells a little too loudly. Madison and I both giggle. We just invited her to come hang out with us tonight at my house for the Glee marathon.

"I know baby. That's why I'm inviting you." I lean over and whisper in her ear.

"Oooook. No need to worry about the single best friend sitting here having to watch you two love birds make kissy face all night long." Madison says putting another fork full of low mien into her mouth.

"Aw. We won't make kissy face the _whole_ night." I joke.

"Yeah." Ashley chimes in, with a serious look on her face. "Just like the first two hours." She shrugs and continues eating. This time Madison and I burst out laughing.

"Good to know." Madison says looking up causing me to follow her line of eyesight. Carmen is coming straight towards us with some papers in her hand. Are those our friendship divorce papers? It wouldn't surprise me if they were.

"Well looky what we have here." Carmen says in a sing song voice. I don't like the look she's giving Ashley right now.

"What's up, Carmen?" Madison asks. The look on her face tells me that whatever's about to go down, will not be good.

"Oh, nothing you know. The usual. Just left the library." She says looking at me then at Ashley then down at the papers in her hands. "I found this really interesting website called epicrecordscelebnews(dot)com," She pauses then looks at Ashley who's looking down at her food.

"And?" I say wanting her to spill whatever she needed to and get away from us so we could finish our lunch in peace.

"And, what I found was very interesting. It seems like our celebrity daughter here." She says a little bit louder causing everyone in the quad to turn and look at us.

"Carmen please, don't." Madison stands up.

"What Mads? I'm just going to tell our friend Spencer here, about her new _friend_."

"Carmen, not here." Madison pleads with her. Walking around to the other side of the table trying to pull her away.

"No!." Carmen shouts, snatching away from Madison. "I think it's only right for Spencer to know the truth." Carmen spits out angrily.

"What are you talking about?" I ask Carmen then turn and look and Ashley who is still looking down at her food. "What is she talking about?" She finally looks up and me and there's this look in her eyes—terror.

"_Well_," Carmen starts, dragging out the word a little longer then necessary. "It seems as though your little friend here." She says pointing to Ashley. "Hasn't been completely honest with you about why she moved here to L.A." Madison tries to pull Carmen away again but she snatches out of her hold.

I turn to Ashley who looks like she just saw a ghost and asks her again, "What is she talking about, Ashley?" She opens her mouth to speak but then closes it. "What?" She still doesn't say anything.

"Well, since she doesn't wanna tell you then I guess I will." Carmen says clearing her throat before she continues, the entire quad looking on in anticipation of the news. "Here, in my hand, I have an article I printed from the website I told you about. It seems as though our little Ashley here got kicked out of her last school for having sex with two girls in the bathroom while she was high on pills and wasted." I look at Ashley as Carmen continues. "She didn't move to L.A because of her dad's company, she moved to L.A because her mom couldn't take her bullshit anymore and shipped her here to live with him, Ashley had never even met her dad until a few months ago." Carmen finishes, getting a collective gasp from every one in the quad.

"Ashley?" I question her. "Is it true?" She doesn't say anything. She just nods her head.

"Ha! Now is that the type of person you wanna associate yourself with Spencer? Alcoholic, drug using whores." Carmen snaps, looking directly at Ashley.

I look around the quad, noticing everyone's eyes on me, waiting for my answer I guess. I look at Ashley trying to read her. Trying to understand why she would lie to me. This whole time, her whole life story has been nothing but a big fat lie.

"Spencer, I..." She starts then stops.

"Well, Spencer?" Carmen asks again. I look at Madison and she mouths and 'I'm Sorry.' And my heart drops. Did she know about this the whole time and didn't tell me? I look between Carmen and Ashley, I guess they're both waiting on my response. It's all too much, everything. I couldn't take it, so I got up and ran as fast as I could towards the parking lot.

When I reached my car, I went to unlock the door but was stopped by someone stepping in front of it.

"I'm sorry." Ashley says looking me straight in my eyes. I look back towards the quad and see that everyone is still watching us. I back up from her a little, knowing all eyes were on me.

"I don't get it." I tell her looking down.

"I know. I'm sorry. I would love to explain it all to you. Everything. But no here. Tonight at your house before the Glee marathon?" She questions.

"Why should I believe anything you tell me now, Ashley?" I asks, and she takes a step forward trying to grab my hand but I instinctively take a step back.

She looks down before answering, "I don't know."

"I don't know..." I repeat. "You don't know? I just found out that you're a pathological liar and you don't know why?" I yell a little louder than I had intended.

"Spencer, please. Not here. Let's just go somewhere please." She says reaching for my hand again. I snatch it away.

"Don't touch me." I snap. Hurt obvious in my voice.

"Spencer." She says taking a step towards me.

"Move."

"But.."

"Move!" I say harsher this time causing her eyes to go wide. She steps aside and I get in my car. I look at Ashley again before I put the car in drive. I can't believe she would do this. Lie to me and pretend like it's okay. I put the car in drive and sped out of the parking lot. Not caring that I still had half the day left. I look in my rear view mirror and catch a glimpse of Ashley still standing in the spot I left her. I can't believe she did this to me. Is it wrong that I'm more mad at her then I am at Carmen?

* * *

><p><em>Thank you to everyone that wished me well on my surgery. It went great so thanks! I hope I didn't disappoint with this chapter. Next update will be Tuesday, hopefully... Thanks for all the reviews. :)<em>


	14. Chapter 13 Apologies Part 1

**Chapter 13**

How come, when everything's going so right someone has to come in and mess it all up? I shoulda known that Carmen was up to something by the way she was acting, all anti-social and moody. I mean like, okay, maybe deep down inside she had good intentions; like she was looking out for a good friend but the way she went about it—was totally inappropriate and unnecessary. She could have come to me with this information and we could have talked about it, but noooo she had to go and blab in front of the whole school about Ashley's past.

What was I supposed to do? What should I have said? No one at school, besides Madison, knew about me and Ashley's more than a friend relationship. But I don't know now. I'm not ready to be out to everyone. Like, could you imagine how my mom would react? She's Catholic. She says that being gay is like telling God that the way he created things wasn't good enough. I wouldn't bank on her being too thrilled about finding out I'm in love with a girl. So, I wasn't ready to be out to anyone yet really, but after yesterday's performance in the quad I'm not sure everyone won't just put two and two together. I did break up with Aiden a little over a week ago and now, all of a sudden, I'm hanging out with a lesbian. That's no coincidence.

And Ashley. Where do I even start with her? Yes, I'm extremely pissed at her but it's not for the reasons you think. I could care less about Ashley's past. I mean, we all do shit we're not proud of. No one's perfect. What I am supremely pissed about is the fact that she lied to me. Maybe she lied to conceal her past, who knows? But what I do know is that, one lie leads to another and that lie leads to many more lies and then you have a big web of Ashley lies. Our whole relationship is based on a lie. Everything she's told me about herself has been a lie. I feel like I don't even know her.

It's weird you know, yesterday when I left school I have every intention on going back. Well, probably not yesterday but today I was gonna go cause I'm not the skipping school kinda girl. At least, not until that one time with Ashley but that's besides the point. The point is, I was gonna go to school today but when I got in my car this morning and started driving to school I ended up at the beach. I couldn't face her. I can't face her right now. I know that she's gonna try and explain everything to me. And the feelings I have for her will cloud my judgment and I'll probably forgive her too quickly. No, I want her to sweat it out. Let her know that her actions really hurt me. Plus, Carmen will be there and I know that I'm not the only one that wants to punch her so maybe I'm saving all of you guys too.

This morning when I woke up I had a dozen text from Ashley, Madison and Carmen. Ashley wanting to explain herself, Madison asking if I was okay and Carmen apologizing. I don't get why she did it if she knew it would hurt me.

As I lay sprawled out on the beach, the place Ashley and I had our unofficial first day, I get another text. I look down and see it's a text from Ashley.

_'Please Spencer, you have to let me explain things to you. Why aren't you at school? Are you okay? Where are you?' _

I feel bad for ignoring her. I know she wants to right things with us but I'm not ready to listen.

_'I can't today. I need some time.'_ I text back.

A couple seconds later she texts back, _'Okay. I understand. Just know that I love you, Spencer. And I'm sorry that you had to find out about my past that way.'_ I hold back the urge to cry, feeling the guilt and pain she has, even in a text. I quickly toss my phone back in my bag before I lost all my self control and told Ashley where I was.

I stayed at the beach for over half the day, waiting until school let out to head home. I didn't wanna get caught at the house during school hours by either one of my parents, cause then I'd have to explain what went down yesterday. I am so not ready for that conversation. I mean, they're hardly ever home, but it seems like whenever you're doing something you're not supposed to—that's when parents always show up unexpectedly.

When I pulled up in my driveway Madison was there waiting for me.

"Hey." I say to her as I get out of the car.

"Hey." She smiles a strained smile. "Are you okay?" She asks, as I make my way to my front door and unlock it.

"Yeah." I say in a small voice, leaving the door open behind me letting her follow me in and up to my room.

"You didn't come to school today." She tells me as I sit down on my bed and she stands over me.

"Yeah, I couldn't be there, not after yesterday. I just needed some me time." I tell her and she nods her head then sits down on the bed. "You knew didn't you?" I ask her, knowing I didn't need to elaborate because she already knew what I was talking about. She nods again. "Well why didn't you tell me Madison? You're my best friend, you're supposed to tell me these types of things. Especially when you see I'm falling head over heels in love with that person."

"I was gonna tell you, Spence. But, I confronted Ashley about it first and she said she would tell you. So I thought that I should just let her tell you, I mean, I thought she would've by now Spence, I swear." She tells me moving closer to me. I can't be mad at Madison, at least she didn't practically out me in front of the whole school.

"Did you know that Carmen knew?" I asks and she rubs my arm comfortingly.

She gives me a look of sorrow and I already know the answer. "I didn't know she was gonna do that." I don't know what Carmen even gained from this. Like, it really makes no sense to me. "She's hurt, Spence." Madison says all of a sudden. Now I'm super confused. Why is she the one hurting?

"Hurt about what? She's the one that practically ruined me and Ashley." I almost yell.

Madison gulps and sighs before saying, "She's hurt that you didn't choose her." Huh? I scrunch my eyebrows in confusion. She continues standing up pacing my room, "I promised I would never tell you this, Spence. I promised, Carm, but now I'm gonna break that promise. A promise, I never had any intentions on breaking but after what happened yesterday, I think you deserve to know." She pauses and stops pacing to look at me. I wait patiently for her to continue. "So, the beginning of ninth grade year." She pauses again, the look on her face is pained. Like it's literally hurting her to say this.

"Madison, what is it?" I asks, she's taking a little too long to continue this time.

"Spencer," She sits down next to me now. "Ninth grade year, Carm told me that she had feelings for you." She stops, letting it all soak in, but I'm not sure if I heard her right.

"Huh?" I question, making sure my ears weren't playing tricks on me.

"She's liked you a long time, Spence. And I think that she's threatened by Ashley. I don't know, maybe she thought she never had a chance because you were straight and with Aiden, but now that she knows about you and Ashley, and that Ashley's gay; she's threatened." She stares at me as I drown in her words. Carmen likes me? Like, as more than a friend? Wait, I'm confused.

"So, what the fuck was all that about in the quad? She did that to break up me and Ashley so she could have a chance?" I ask, seriously confused at this point. Who the hell does that to someone they supposedly care about? If anything, that would push me further from you.

"I guess. Honestly, Spence, I don't know where Carmen's head is. Ever since Ashley got here she's been all over the place."

"So let me get this straight. Carmen has had feelings for me since ninth grade, but she never said anything because she didn't want to come in between Aiden and I. But when Ashley came in the picture and I broke up with Aiden, she decided she would act like a total ass instead of just telling me how she felt, and then decided to hurt me in the worst way possible?" I ask my best friend who just nods.

That has to be the dumbest thing I ever heard. Wouldn't you agree?

"Have you talked to Ashley?" Madison asks me and I drop my head. It hasn't even been a full day and I miss her like crazy already.

"Not yet."

"Just hear her out Spence, when I talked to her, I threatened her. I told her that if she didn't tell you, I would and if she ever hurt you I'd beat the shit out of her. So I'm sure she had every intention on telling you." My best friend tells me with a serious look on her face.

"Thank you." I say hugging her. She pulls with confusion on her face. "For being here—for always being here when I need you. And for threatening Ashley to treat me right." I finish with a smile.

"Always." She says simply, mimicking my smile. "That's what best friends are for chica. Okay, I'm gonna get out of here." She tells me standing up from my bed.

"Okay." I say getting up too and hugging her. "Thank you again, Mads." I say as we pull back. She gives me a small smile before leaving.

I flop back down on my bed, thoughts of Ashley filling my mind. I wish she would have just told me all this stuff from the beginning. Then we wouldn't be going through all this right now.

* * *

><p>The next day at school when I pulled into the parking lot Ashley was there waiting for me, with a dozen roses. Ugh! She makes it so hard to be mad at her.<p>

"I'm sorry, baby." She tells me as I get out of my car.

"You can't fix this with flowers, Ashley." I tell her, holding back a smile at her insanely sweet gesture.

"I know. And I'm not trying to. I just saw these this morning and I felt like I wanted to get them for you, so I did." She says holding the flowers out for me to take with a smile.

"Thank you." I take the flowers and put them in my car.

We both stand there for a minute awkwardly before she says, "Okay then. I'm gonna head to class. I'll see you later, Spencer." She runs away towards the quad. I already see that she's gonna make it super difficult for me to be mad at her.

And super difficult is exactly how she made it.

That went on for almost a week... me coming to school and Ashley having all types of gifts for me. Being all extra sweet and stuff. It was so hard to not just give in and forgive her but I needed time to think. Time away from her—time to myself.

* * *

><p>"Spencer, sweetie" My mom shakes me and I groan in disapproval at being woken up this early on a Saturday. "Spencer, you have company." She shakes me again. I open my eyes and peek over at my clock to see it's 11am. I never wake up this early on Saturday. It's my down day. Meaning, no school, no homework and more sleep.<p>

"Ugh! Who is it mom?" I ask, sitting up.

"It's Carmen sweetie." What the hell is she doing here. Not once this week did she try and talk to me to explain why she did what she did and now, she wants to talk. Psst, whatever.

"Tell her I don't want company." I tell my mom turning back over in my bed.

"Spencer, sweetie that's rude. She's your friend. Are you two fighting?" She asks, ripping the covers back off me. I can already see that's she's gonna leave me alone about this.

"No mom, look can you just tell her I'll be down in a sec?" I get up and go into my bathroom to freshen up.

When I walk down the steps Carmen is sitting on the couch, playing with her fingers. I clear my throat and she whips her head around to see me on the steps. I don't say anything I just turn around and walk back up to my room. She can follow if she wants. I don't really care.

After a few minutes she appears in my room. Neither of us willing to be the first person to talk. I mean, she's the one that messed up. Why should I have to be the one to talk?

I'm sick of this silence though.

"What is it exactly that you want, Carmen?" I asks as she stands in my doorway. I'm in no mood for this really.

"Um..." She starts, looking up at me and seeing my less than pleased face. I motion my hands for her to continue. "Well, I just wanted to say I was sorry, Spence. I didn't mean for it to happen that way." She says, finally coming and sitting next to me on the bed.

"You printed an article on Ashley and read it in front of half the school. What exactly did you expect to happen?" I ask, now angrier than I was.

"Well, I really just wanted you to stop talking to Ashley. I can't stand seeing you with her, Spence."

"And why is that?" I ask, already knowing the answer. Honestly, I just need to hear it from her.

"Well." She says looking down at her fingers once again.

"Carmen." I say and she looks up at me.

"I like you, Spence." She says, never breaking eye contact. "Since we were 14 I've liked you. I never said anything because you were with Aiden, and you were both my friends. I didn't wanna come in between you two, but when Ashley came into the picture, and you broke up with Aiden for her—I couldn't take it." She finishes and I don't say anything, letting everything set in. "Spence?" She questions.

"I'm sorry that you felt that way all those years and felt like you couldn't tell me, Carmen. It must have been horrible to have those feelings for someone then watch them be with someone else. But, I'm with Ashley." I sigh when Carmen face falls. "I love her, Carmen. And before her, I would have never been with a girl. It's her and only her I have feelings for. I'm sorry, Carm." I say and she stands up. I feel bad that I can't reciprocate the feelings that she has for me, I know it must hurt, a lot.

"I'm sorry that I've been an asshole these past couple of months." She says as she starts walking towards my door. She stops in the doorway and turns around to look at me one more time before leaving, so much pain evident in her eyes and I feel terrible. She mumbles something before walking down the steps and out the front door.

I really hope this thing where Carmen want's to act like a complete asshole is over, I really want my friend back.

As I laid back down on my bed, thinking to myself, if I can forgive, Carmen, then I sure as hell should let Ashley at least explain herself.

I grab my phone off the dresser and text Ashley.

_'I'm ready to listen.'_

A couple of second later she texts back,_ 'I'm on my way.' _I smile at her eagerness then toss my phone back on the dresser.

I'm fairly sure Ashley broke at least two or three laws to get here. I know it takes at least 20 minutes to get here and Ashley got here in about nine. So you do the math. We're in my room I'm sitting on my bed and she's standing in front of me.

"I'm so glad you called, well texted, Spencer. I missed you like crazy." She said kneeling down in front of me.

"I'm listening." I try and sound like I'm not just as excited to see her as she is me.

"I don't even know where to start." She lets out a small laugh then clears her throat when she see I'm not laughing with her. "Well, okay. I guess I'll start with why I lied." She says, getting up and sitting down next to me on the bed. "I love you a lot, Spencer. And when I first got here, honestly, I never expected to find someone that I would fall totally head over heels in love with. But, as you can see, things never really go how we plan them." I look up from the floor and catch her eyes. Bad idea. My heart flutters as she continues. "I told you all those things, Spence, cause I didn't want you to know about my past. I didn't want you to look at me how you're looking at me right now." She sighs then stands. "I didn't want my past to come in between us. I wanted to come here and have a fresh start. Leave all that shit I did back in San Diego, behind me." She says, sitting back down and grabbing my hands. "I love you and I don't wanna lose you. I know that I messed up, but I promise to never lie to you again. To never make you feel like you're on the outside looking in. I swear on everything, Spencer, I will never let you find out something about me like that again. I wanna tell you everything. Anything you wanna know, just ask me baby, and I'll tell you." She finishes, staring directly into my eyes.

"I'm not mad about your past, Ashley. I could care less what you used to do. Is about what you do now. You lied to me, and I had to find out in the worst way possible. That's what I was upset about."

"I know. And like I said, I'm so super sorry baby. I promise to spend forever trying to make it up to you." She finishes with the cutest little pout I've ever seen and I melt.

"Okay." I say as a small smile plays at my lips.

"Okay?" She says, a little surprised. I guess she expected to do more groveling.

"Yes." I say and she smiles.

"I love you." She says pulling me into a hug.

"I love you, too." I whisper into her ear. She pulls back and cups my face before pulling me into a kiss. I can feel how much she missed me and I'm showing her just how much I missed her too. As we pull back from the kiss, both flushed, there's a knock on my door before my mom comes in. Both our heads shoot towards the door and Ashley stands.

"Oh, hello there, Ashley. How are you doing?" Why does my mom always pretend like she doesn't know I have company? Does she think the expensive foreign vehicle in our drive way belong to us? Like it just magically appeared there. Again I say, really mom? Really?

"I'm fine Mrs. C." Ashley smiles at my mother nervously.

"You're staying for lunch I presume?" I mom asks, coming into my room placing my laundry on the bed. Yes, my mother still does my laundry. And?

"Um..." She starts, looking at me for an answer. I shrug. "Actually, I was gonna take Spencer to lunch." She tells my mother who just looks back between the both of us before saying,

"Okay. Well I'll see you for dinner, Spencer. You girls have fun." She smiles then exits my room.

"You're taking me to lunch?" I question Ashley, with a smirk on my face.

"I am now." She smiles. "Now go get ready. I have lost time to make up for. And a lot of kissing to do." She smiles and exits so I can get ready. How much did I miss this girl?

* * *

><p><em>AN: I know a few people were upset about the previous chapter... I hope this one makes up for it a little. Maybe? Hopefully... anywho's I hope you enjoy and next chapter shouldn't be that far down the road. Thanks for all the comments. :)_


	15. Chapter 14 Apologies Part 2

I decided to try and answer some of your reviews. :)

**parker88- **yeah you've know for a while now about Carmen's feelings lol. And you're right, it doesn't excuse what she did, in her mind she'd rather see Spencer miserable then with someone thats not her, if that someone is a girl. smh.

**queenred12-** seriously? we had conversations about this plot? cause i thought i made it up the day i wrote the prologue smh i guess it was just in the back of my mind.

**OneLiner-** Spencer feels Carmens pain. Unrequited love is never fun.

**noodles307- **yeah, she was watching them for two months-suffering. That doesn't excuse what she did but she probably thought she was doing Spencer a favor in her head. I wanted to make Madison not an asshole like in every other ff. :)

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 14<strong>

"I was gonna tell you this a long time ago, Madison approached me and told me that if I didn't come clean to you t\hen she would, after she beat the living shit out of me first." I smile as she continues. We're at In and Out for lunch. Best. Burgers. Ever. "I know everything that Carmen said, seemed really bad but it really all just got blown outta proportion." She says as we both take a bite of our burgers.

"Were you scared to tell me?" I ask, with a mouth full of food.

She chews and quickly swallows before saying, "Don't talk with your mouth full of food, Spence. Ew." She smiles and fakes disgust.

"Okay, mom. Sorry." I return the smile as I dip a fry into my ketchup and put it in my mouth. "So were you?"

"I mean, yeah, of course. Like I said I didn't want you to look at me differently. I didn't wanna be the person I was in San Diego. I'm not that person anymore." She stops as a family of four walks past us. The two children singing a song about burgers. It's really the cutest thing ever. Both Ashley and I smile at them. As I watch them take a booth in the back corner she continues. "I love you, Spencer. And I think I knew it from the moment I laid eyes on you, I was trying so hard to impress you that I didn't wanna ruin it by telling you about my past. I didn't think you would want anything to do with me after you found out." She finishes as I slurp the last bit of shake left in my cup. I keep slurping, although it's gone and Ashley just stares at me in amusement. I look up to see that she's looking at me.

"What?" I say, slurping some more.

"I think it's all gone, Spence. I could totally buy you another one, you know?" I giggle and push the cup aside. "Should I continue, or did you wanna try and get some more shake outta that cup?" She smiles and I shake my head as I take a big bite out of my burger. I swear this is so freaking good. She just looks at me as I bite into my burger again and I gesture my hand for her to continue. "Do you want me to go into details about what happened?" She asks, a little apprehensive. I can tell that she doesn't like talking about her past but I think I need to know what happened.

I swallow the food in my mouth before saying, "Yeah, I would like to know what happened." I tell her with as much sympathy as I can. I want her to know that I'm not here to judge her, I just wanna listen.

She nods then continues, "It started when I was in the 9th grade, I had just come out to everyone, including myself really. People started treating me differently, calling me names, picking on me, throwing stuff at me—just all types of bad shit really. It didn't matter that I was Ashley Davies, the daughter of a Record Label Exec, to them I was just dyke, who they wanted to disappear from their little tight-nit community." She pauses and I nod, not really knowing what to say. She sighs then continues, "I didn't expect it to get as bad as it did, in my head I'm like, why does everyone care so much about what I do, and whom I do it with. It didn't make sense to me. And my mom." She scoffs. "She was non-existent. She knew how I was being treated and she didn't even care enough to switch my schools, or move, or anything. I would've even been satisfied with being home schooled—it's not like we didn't have the money. But she didn't even care enough about me to do that." I can see the tears building in her eyes and I think about just telling her it's okay, she doesn't need to tell me the rest. I see where this is going. But I think she may need to get this off her chest—someone to listen.

"Ashley." I say, as the tears that were threatening finally fall. I get up from my side of the booth and walk around to her side, wrapping my arm around her.

"I'm sorry." She says through sobs. "I didn't mean to cry."

"Shh." I tell her. "It's okay. You don't have to continue." I hold her in my arms for a few minutes before she gathers herself.

"No, I wanna tell you, Spence. I don't want any secrets." She says wiping her face with a napkin.

"Okay." I tell her, not wanting to let her go, but forcing myself too—retreating back to my side of the booth.

She clears her throat then continues, "In the tenth grade things only got worse, people resorted to physical abuse." I contort my face in anger, 'how could anyone fucking do that?' "I would come home bruised and battered and my mom couldn't have cared less. And the principal, he was a homophobic bastard, he knew what was going on and he didn't even care. None of those people that beat me up, ever got any type of punishment. I started drinking, it numbed the pain I was feeling—the pain I felt all the time. Physical, emotional and mental. I started sleeping with random girls, I didn't start using drugs until a couple days before I got caught in the bathroom with those two girls. I was high and drunk and I'm not proud of what I did, but I would have done anything to get away from that place."

"Wait, what do you mean?" I ask, confused. She doesn't answer me, she just looks behind us at the family and gives a weak smile then turns her attention to the floor. "Ashley, you did that on purpose didn't you? You wanted to get kicked out of that school."

She finally looks up at me and I can see the answer in her eyes, she doesn't even have to tell me.

"My mom was never gonna save me from that place, so I figured, if I got myself kicked out then she'd have no choice but to put me in another school. I didn't know she would send me here to live with my dad. I just thought she'd switch my schools maybe move to a different county or something. But she said that she couldn't take my behavior anymore and she didn't know what she did to deserve such a whore as daughter." My breath hitches as Ashley finishes and now it's my turn to cry. "Oh no, it's okay, Spencer. I'm fine." She says, rushing to my side and engulfing me in her arms. "I'm glad that she sent me here. If she hadn't, I would have never met you."

She's right, if her mom hadn't been such a bitch, Ashley wouldn't be here right now and I would have never found the missing piece to my puzzle.

"I'm sorry you had to go through all that." I say, trying to calm my sobs.

"It's okay." She smiles. "My dad's awesome and he treats me way better than my mom. Granted, he's trying to make up for 16 years old lost time, but he's a great dad nonetheless." She says, as I finally control my breathing. I wipe my face and smile at her. "What?" She asks, matching my smile.

"Oh, nothing." I sigh then look down at my half empty plate.

"What's wrong, Spencer?" She asks lifting my head to look at her, concern evident in her voice.

"It's nothing... I just..I..." I glance back down at my food.

"Spence?"

"I just really wanted to finish this burger." I smile as my eyes meet hers again.

She shakes her head and smiles. "My girlfriend is such a fat ass." She jokes, as she gets up and takes her place back on her side of the booth. "You wanna get another burger to go, Spence?" She asks and my head shoots up.

"Hell yeah. And I shake too." I say in a really high pitched voice, causing her body to shake with laughter.

"God, I love you." She says as she's finally able to control her laughter.

"Not as much as I love you." We get up and go order me some more food.

* * *

><p>After demolishing my burger and shake in the car, when we pulled into Ashley's driveway, I truly did feel like a fat ass.<p>

"Oh. My. God. I'm so stuffed." I say as she puts the car in park. Lifting my shirt to rub my now bulging belly.

"Well you ate two really big burgers, Spence. What'd you expect?" She asks, looking at me seriously.

"Um. I don't know." I say with a shrug, she giggles as we both exit the car.

"You're crazy, you know that babe?"

"Crazy about you." I smile as she intertwines our fingers.

"Oh, yay! My dad's here." She says scanning the driveway then looking at me. "I want you to meet him."

"How do you know your dad's here?"

She stops and nods towards the six cars including the one we just exited parked along the driveway. "All of the cars are here silly." She says then drags me into the house. "_Dad_!" She yells once we enter the house. A tall, slender man with short brown hair materializes from the kitchen.

"Ashley, sweetie." He says coming over and hugging her, I step away to allow them this father daughter moment.

"Hey dad." Ashley says pulling back from the hug. She reaches for my hand and pulls me back close to her. This is Spencer." She says and her dad looks back between the two of us.

"_The_ Spencer?" He questions. I hope I'm the only Spencer in her life.

"Yes, dad. The one and only." Ashley says, locking eyes with me and smiling. I return the smile.

"Well, hello there, Spencer." He says, picking me up into a hug. He's squeezing me so tight, I think I'm gonna vomit.

"Um, dad, I wouldn't squeeze so tight." Ashley says and he puts me down. I breath a sigh of relief and mentally thank Ashley for reading my mind. I mentally thanked her cause she can read my mind, duh, keep up people. She smiles and mouths you're welcome. See! I told you. Ha! My girlfriend is better than yours. "Well, it's nice to finally meet you, the one and only, Spencer." Her dad says getting a giggle from both me and Ashley.

"It's nice to meet you too, Mr. Davies." I say and he makes a face

"Please, call me Raife." He said as he retreats back to the kitchen. Ashley grabs my hand and pulls me towards the kitchen. "Are you girls hungry?" He asks, as we enter the kitchen.

"No, dad. We just came from lunch." Ashley informs him as we both sit on a stool behind the counter.

"What about dessert? I could have Emilio whip up some sundaes for you." He finishes and my head immediately shoots to Ashley. She rolls her eyes and giggles.

"We'll take dessert." She says and I clap my hands and wiggle a little in my seat. Her dad leaves the kitchen for a moment before returning with a guy I'm assuming is Emilio, their personal chef. He's wearing a white jacket and a chef's hat.

"So, Spencer." Raife starts, taking a seat on the stool next to Ashley. "You love my daughter?"

"_Dad_!" Ashley shrieks.

"What? I'm just trying to get to know the one and only, Spencer. What'd I say?" He asks throwing his hands up, a small smile playing at his lips.

"Spencer, you don't have-"

"Yes!" I say cutting Ashley off, directing my attention to Raife. "I love your daughter very much, Sir." I say grabbing Ashley's hand and squeezing it. I avert my gaze to Ashley and we stare at each other for a moment before Raife speaks again.

"That's good to know. She talks about you twenty-four-seven." He says, causing another loud shriek to leave Ashley's mouth before she gets up and hits him playfully on the arm. "Well I'm just telling her what it is Ashley." He laughs and continues, "You know, she practically begged me for a month to convince Sara Bareilles and The Script to do an impromptu concert for you on your birthday." I nod my head and smile at the memory. "That was no easy task, seeing as how they were both on tour at the time. But when Ashley sets her mind to something she won't leave you alone about it until she gets her way." He smiles at Ashley and places a hand on her shoulder.

"I know, Sir. It's one of the reasons I love her." I tell him truthfully and Ashley looks up at me and smiles.

"Yeah. She's easy to love." He says and stands, placing a kids on Ashley's forehead. "Well, you two enjoy the rest of your day. I'm gonna head to work." He ruffles Ashley's hair before saying, "See you later, kiddo. And behave please." He winks before he exists. Ashley looks back at me smiles as Emilio places our sundaes on the counter.

"Here you are, Ms. Davies."

"Thank you, Emilio." Ashley says and grabs both sundaes off the counter. "Let's eat these upstairs." She says and turns to exit the kitchen.

"Thank you." I say to Emilio and he just bows his head and smiles.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you ate that whole sundae after you just ate all that food." Ashley says as I roll over on my back.<p>

"It was sooooo good though."

"Yeah, I'm sure it was, chubby." She says pinching my cheek.

"You'll still love me if I'm fat right?" I say, trying to look serious.

She straddles me and looks down at me before saying, "I'll love you if you're 200 pounds" She says bending down and kissing my nose, "I'll love you when you're old" she kisses my right cheek, "I'll love you when you're wrinkly" she kisses my other cheek, "I'll even love you after we're both long gone from this earth." She says placing kisses over both my eyes. "I'll never stop loving you, Spencer." She says, finally bringing our lips together in a chaste kiss.

"How did I get so lucky?" I asks, as she pulls back and smiles.

"I think we both should agree that I'm the lucky one here." She says kissing me again. I snake my hands up the length of her back until I reach her hair, letting my fingers get lost in her brown locks, pulling her closer to me—deepening the kiss.

She breaks the kiss, placing barely there kisses over the length of my neck, before I grab her hair pulling her face back up to me, reconnecting our lips. She brushes her tongue across my bottom lips requesting entrance, that I grant eagerly. Our tongues dance around in each others mouths before she pulls back taking my bottom lip in between her teeth, causing me to moan at the sudden pain/pleasure.

"Off." I say tugging at the bottom of her shirt and she rips it off and tosses it...somewhere. She brings our lips back together in another passionate kiss and we both moan as I dig my nails into Ashley back and scratch my way up.

"Fuck." She moans into my mouth and I sit up and take my shirt off, tossing it on the floor beside the bed. I grab her head and flip us over so I'm on top and a small smirk plays at Ashley's lips before she says, "If you wanted to top me baby, all you had to do was ask."

I shake my head and smile at her cockiness before bring our lips back together. I reach down in between us and unzip her pants and she kicks them off and pushes them off the bed with her foot. "I really want you to touch me." Ashley sits up and whispers in my ear. Is it wrong to be scared right now? Like literally, scared out of my mind. "Spencer?" I mean, come on! Ashley has been with how many girls? The amount I've been with you can count on one hand, hell you could count on _no hands_. I don't know if I'm ready to do this. "Spence!" I mean, yes, I love Ashley and I wanna be intimate with her, like really really bad, but I don't know what to do, I've never done this before, I'm freaking out here people. A little help, please? "Baby!" Ashley practically yells. Oh shit

"Yeah?" I asks as she gently moves me off of her and sits up.

"What's wrong?" She asks uneasy.

"It's just that... I... I don't."

"You're not ready." She says, getting up to put back on her shirt and pants. She looks hurt and I feel terrible.

"Ashley, it's not that I don't wanna go there with you, I do. Believe me, I do. It's just I'm scared." I tell her truthfully as I get up and find my shirt—putting it back on.

"I know, Spence. I told you, I don't want you to feel like I'm rushing you. Cause I'm not." She tells me as we both sit back down on the bed. "I want you to do this when you're ready." She says with a smile. I know that she means what she's saying but I also know how bad she wants this to happen already.

"I love you." I tell her, kissing her lips lightly. She grabs my head and deepens the kiss.

"I love you, too." She says into my lips. "I should take you home, before I lose all self-control." She smiles and kisses me again.

"I think that's a good idea." I kiss her again before we both make our way down downstairs and out to her car.

* * *

><p>"I really had a great time with you today." I tell her as we pull into my driveway. "But then again, I always have fun with you." I say and she smiles.<p>

"I'm like a fun guru, so really, you have no choice in the matter." She says seriously and shrugs. I giggle at her cuteness. "Can you call me later?"

"Of course." I say as she leans over and hugs me. I see the curtain in the living room move and I know my mom is watching. "We have an audience." I tell her as we pull back.

"You should go because I might kiss you." Ashley says and puts both her hands on the wheel.

"You're so adorable. I love you." I say opening the door.

"I love you, too." She says as I close the door and she quickly pulls away.

I go in the house to find to my mom and dad both in the living room watching T.V.

"Hey mom, hey dad." I say entering the living room.

"Hey sweetie, you ready for dinner?" My dad asks me not taking his eyes off the T.V. I forgot I had dinner with my parents and whore bag tonight, I probably shouldn't have eaten so much.

"Um, yeah sure dad." I say as I take a seat in the chair adjacent to the couch.

"Spencer, honey. I got a call from Mrs. Simmons, from church, today—you know, Micheal's mom?" I nod my head and she continues. "Well she told me that she heard from Mrs. Jackie, who heard it from Mrs. Josephine whose daughter goes to your school that Ashley was a..." She pauses, like it hurts her to have to say the word. "A lesbian." She barely whispered. My dad looked back between the both of us before excusing himself to the kitchen for a drink. "Is that true, Spencer?"

I'm really sure how to answer this. Should I tell her the truth? Should I lie? Should I just come out right here and now? Tell them both that I'm in love with Ashley... the look on my moms face answered that question for me.

"No mom, it's not true. I don't know where she got such a thing." I say then look down at the carpeted floor.

"Okay, good." She said letting out a sigh of relief. "She seems like a nice enough young lady but we know that being Gay is a sin. I know you wouldn't hang out with a sinner would you, Spencer honey?" Not only am I hanging out with one mom, I am one. I nod my head and she smiles before retreating to the kitchen, too.

How can I ever come out when I know that my own family wouldn't even accept me?

* * *

><p>Dinner was...uneventful. I felt awkward the entire time, like I didn't belong there and it was supposed to be a dinner for me. After that talk with my mom, I'm a little uneasy. What if she finds out about me and Ashley? What would she do? Being raised Catholic, I know that my feelings for Ashley are wrong and that's part of the reason I slept with Aiden, thinking maybe I could erase those feelings—be normal again. But what makes us normal? Who decides who we should or shouldn't love? I found someone that I love, that loves me back—shouldn't that be all that matters?<p>

We got back from dinner around eleven so, after showering I called Ashley to tell her about what happened with my mom.

"And you just lied to her about it?" Ashley asks, for like the tenth time.

"What was I supposed to say, Ashley? She caught me off guard first of all and I don't know if I'm ready to be that out yet." I tell her and the other end goes quiet. "Ashley." I say after a moment.

"All I'm saying is, maybe you should tell her before someone else does." Hurt evident in her voice. Trust me, I hate having to hide my relationship with Ashley but it's how things have to be right now, at least until I figure out how to tell my parents.

"I know." I sigh and bury my head in my pillow.

"I love you, Spence."

"I love you, too Ash."

"I'm gonna go to sleep, I'm pretty tired." She says, yawning.

"Okay. I'm gonna come by tomorrow so we can hang out." I say yawning, too.

"Okay, baby. Goodnight."

"Goodnight." I say and we both hang up.

I didn't get much sleep that night, thinking how and when to come out to my family. I don't want Ashley to feel like she's my dirty little secret. But I know I need to figure this out, before someone figures it out for me.

* * *

><p>AN: So I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. Getting to hear Ashley's side of the story better. Comment and let me know. Thanks. :)


	16. Chapter 15 A Day Of Fun

**Chapter 15**

I didn't have time re-read this, any mistakes I'll fix later.

* * *

><p>"Not that I don't love waking up to the sound of your voice but seriously, Ash?" I glance over and look at the clock on my nightstand. "Mmm, baaaaaby. It's nine o'clock in the morning" I whine, rolling over putting my face in my pillows.<p>

"I wanna go to the beach with you." She says simply.

"And that sounds amazing. But, can we do it in like two hours?" I ask, yawning into the receiver.

"Nope. Now get your lazy butt out of bed and get dressed cause I'm gonna be there in like 15 minutes." She tells me, then hangs up before I can respond. Ugh! Not like I can say no now. I drag myself out of bed and into the bathroom to get ready.

After I was done getting ready I went downstairs to find my mom, dad, and whore bag all in the kitchen—my mom cooking.

"Hey Spencer, honey. What are you doing up so early on a Sunday? You going to church with us, today?" She asks, turning the bacon over in the pan.

"Morning, Spence." My dad says, not taking his eyes off the newspaper he was reading.

"Um, no mom." I say grabbing a pop tart from the box on the counter. "Actually, I'm gonna go hang with Ashley." I tell her opening the wrapper and munching on one of the pop tarts.

She turns and looks at me before saying, "You and Ashley becoming close?" I'm not sure if she meant that in the way that I took it.

"Um, I guess." I say, unsure of what else to say.

"Hmph." She says before turning back to the food.

"Ashley's so hot." Glen chimes in.

"Moooom. Tell Glen to stop being a perv. Ashley's only 16." She gives him a look and he shrugs before getting off the stool and walking into the living room. I look down at my phone and see I have a text from Ashley.

_'I'm outside, beautiful.' _

"I'm gonna be home late so don't wait up, kay?" I tell my parents as I walk towards the door. They both nod and I run out the door and get in Ashley's car.

"I missed you." She says, hugging me.

"I would've missed you more if you had let me get more sleep." I say jokingly to my girlfriend.

"Oh, stop being so dramatic, it's not even that early." She says, putting the car in reverse and pulling out of my driveway.

"It's early for me. My mom was even surprised. She asked if I was gonna go to church with them." I can't remember the last time I went to church. Not that I don't love God, or anything. Let's just say, I don't really agree with my parent's views on religion.

"Well, this is normal for me. So, from now on this is normal for you." She adds with a smile as we head towards the beach.

* * *

><p>"This isn't the beach Ashley." I say looking around the harbor as a few boats pull in and out.<p>

"I know." She says getting out of the car.

"I thought you said we were going to the beach. Hence the bathing suit I'm wearing underneath my outfit." I say getting out of the car as well.

"Well, you can still go swimming." She says.

"But...but... I was looking forward to the beach." I whine.

"Just relax, Spence." She says, grabbing my hand, pulling me towards a bunch of yacht's. We walk down the bridge to the biggest yacht I've ever seen in my life, we stop and she looks at me and smiles.

"Ashley?" I question.

"I begged my dad to let us use his yacht for today." She says, looking up at the monstrous boat in front of us.

"You...I've never...Ugh! I love you." I say engulfing her into a bear hug. "You're so freaking amazing." I say as we pull back.

"I know." She says simply kissing the tip of my nose. "Now come on. We have so much to do and so little time." She smiles as she drags me onto the boat.

"Wow, this is...wow." I say as we enter the main deck. There's a long table filled with every type of fruit you could think of. "Oooohhhh, grapes." I say and run over to the table and start stuffing them in my mouth by twos.

"Spencer, oh my God, slow down or you're gonna choke." She says cutely, as she appears at my side.

"I wove groaps." I say with a mouth full.

"You what?" She asks and her body shakes from laughter.

I chew up the grapes in my mouth before I say, "Fuck you." and grab a pineapple off the table popping it in my mouth.

"Oh, you will." She stops laughing and says seductively. Cue shiver.

"Um."

She smiles before saying, "This was actually for later, Spence. We're gonna swim first up top."

"There's a pool?" I ask, excitedly, clapping my hands together and bouncing up and down.

"Duh." She says giggling at me. "Come on." She says pulling me towards the stairs that lead to the sun deck.

"Okay, okay." I reach back and grab some more pineapples off the tray stuffing them in my mouth. Ashley giggles at me as we ascend the steps. "Wow." I say as we reach the top and I look out at the ocean.

"You're so cute." She smiles and kisses my cheek. "Now take off your clothes." I stop chewing and look at her. She rolls her eyes before saying, "And get in the pool, Spence."

"Oh." I swallow the rest of the fruit in my mouth.

"Your mind is always in such a dirty place, Spence." She giggles at me and shakes her head.

"Well, you're pretty hot. So don't blame me." I say as I strip off my clothes to reveal my black and red bikini. Ashley stops taking off her own clothes and looks at me.

"You're pretty hot yourself." She retorts, walking up to me so that she is now directly in front of me—a breath apart. I gulp. "Good thing you're _my_ girlfriend." She leans forward and whispers in my ear. I'm a hundred percent sure my heart just skipped a beat. This chick is giving me heart palpitations, that can not be healthy.

"Yeah, good thing." I try and whisper in the same seductive voice as her. Yeah, that doesn't really work for me. I'll let her have that.

"Get in the pool, Spence." She says before stripping off the rest of her clothes and diving in. I follow behind her. After swimming for about an hour, I begged to go eat, after calling me fat ass and giggling at me for a couple minutes she finally agreed.

* * *

><p>"I bet I could toss a grape in your mouth from over here." We're back in the main deck now. I'm sitting on the couch and Ashley is sitting across from me on a stool. After demolishing like half the spread that was laid out for us, we're now just talking. Of course, I'm still eating. What else did you expect?<p>

"I bet you can't." She says

"Okay, what are we betting?" I ask and she smiles.

"If I win, you have to do whatever I want you to do for the rest of the day." She says smugly. I know exactly what she's thinking.

"And if I win?" I ask, popping another grape in my mouth and crossing my arms.

"I'll do whatever you want." She says shrugging.

I think for a second then say, "Okay, deal." She smiles before positioning her head and opening her mouth, waiting for me to toss the grape in.

I so got this.

I grab a grape from my bowl and I bite down on my tongue as I ready myself and take aim. I toss the grape and it misses her mouth and hits her in the eye.

"Shit!" She exclaims grabbing her eye.

"Oh, fuck. I'm sorry, Ash." I say rushing to her side.

"Ow, ow, owie." She rubs her eye.

"I'm so sorry. I swear you distracted me with your sexy body and it slipped. You so cheated, but that's besides the point. Are you okay?" I ask, trying to get a better look at her eye but she won't move her hand from it. "Lemmy see."

"That really hurt, Spence." She drops her hand and looks at me with her 'good' eye.

"I know, I'm sorry. You wanna rinse it out?" I ask, running to grab a towel and wetting it in the sink and running back to her.

"I could totally go blind. I could go blind and not be able to see you anymore." She pauses and tries to open her eye. "Ouch, ouch, owie." She says, quickly closes it back. "I could go blind and not be able to see my hot girlfriend anymore." She says panicked.

It's quite cute actually. But don't tell her I said that.

"You're not, stop being so dramatic baby." I tell her, placing the wet towel over her eye. "Better?"

She sighs before replying, "Aaaahhh, much." She smiles and I kiss her lips. "Oh, don't try and butter me up. You still lost the bet. And just because you nearly blinded me, doesn't mean I'm not gonna collect my reward."

"Oookay. What exactly did you have in mind?" A small smirk plays at her lips.

"Oh, nothing major."

* * *

><p>"Oh my God, Ashley. I'm freaking out. I'm really really freaking out." I say and Ashley just laughs at me. "It's so not funny."<p>

"It's not that bad, Spence."

"We're in the ocean. Sharks live in the ocean. Do you understand that? Sharks!" I shriek and she laughs some more. "Sharks." I mumble under my breath looking around in the water. Yes! I surely am searching for sharks. I guess I didn't know what she was thinking.

Oh, if you're wondering why we're in the ocean, well, Ashley won the best so I basically have to do anything she wants. Yeah, and instead of totally taking advantage of me she wanted to go snorkeling. Snorkeling! Who passes up a make out session and possible third base-age to go swim in an ocean full of sharks and other pointy things.

"Okay, grab on to Ms. Davies, and make sure you two stay together." The snorkeling instructor tells us.

"I think that I'm fine up here." I say looking back between Ashley and the instructor. She laughs at me again before she puts my mouthpiece in and pulls down my mask, doing the same with hers. She pulls me off further into the water and I'm freaking terrified.

* * *

><p>Snorkeling actually wasn't that bad. I mean, yes, I was still terrified we were gonna get eaten my sharks or something else that mistook us for an afternoon delight. But, having Ashley there holding my hand helped tremendously.<p>

"I'm gonna shower." I tell her as we enter into the cabin. "I have fish juice on me." I say dramatically and she playfully rolls her eyes.

"Okay, drama queen. Let me show you where it is." She says, walking down the hall. I follow behind her. "This is the big one. I'll let you have it and I'll take the smaller one down the hall." She tells me and starts to retreat.

"Ashley." I call after her and she turns around.

"Yeah?"

"Could you..." I trail off. Not really sure of what I even want to ask her.

"Spence?" She questions as she walks back to me. "You okay?"

"You could come in here...with me." I trail off, looking down at the ground. She lifts my chin and smiles at me before leading me into the bathroom. She motions for me to turn around and unzips my wet suit and I do the same for her. I take off my bathing suit while she turns on the shower and she turns and looks back at me.

Her breath hitches when she sees my naked form. She opens her mouth and closes it, like she's at a loss for words. She takes off her bathing suit before pulling me into the shower with her. She closes the glass door behind us and we just stare at each other.

I'm taking in every part of her. Breathing her. Living her. She's so beautiful. She takes her left hand and places it on my cheek, smiling, and her hand travels from my cheek down over my shoulder, down the length of my arm. When she reaches my hand she takes it in hers, water cascading over her shoulders, she places my hand on her heart.

"I love you." Her heart is beating a mile a minute.

I look up at her and she smiles. "I love you, too." I say smiling back. I take my hand off her heart and let it run over her breast and down to her hip. I pull her into me and connect our lips—not being able to hold it back any longer. She pushes me into the shower wall, intensifying the kiss. It's a needy one—wanting, longing.

She breaks the kiss. "Spencer?" She questions and I just shake my head. I know what she asking. She reconnects our lips as her hands that were cupping my face make their way down my body to my ass. She squeezes it and we both moan into the kiss. She takes my bottom lip between her teeth as her hand makes its way from my ass and is now in between us. We both open our eyes as her finger dives into my folds and sits there. Her eyes are questioning, making sure I'm ready for this. I answer her with my eyes and she complies, massaging my clit with two fingers, eliciting a loud moan from me.

She moves slowly at first, savoring every second of it as her lips leave my lips and land on my neck, where she lightly sucks. I can't help the constant moaning I'm doing, and I'm sure she doesn't mind it.

She picks up pace a little and lets the tip of her finger enter me as her thumb continues to massage my clit.

"Fuck!" I moan out and she moans into my neck. My knees go weak and I'm sure Ashley is supporting all my weight right now. She stops rubbing my clit and grabs both my legs, wrapping them around her waist, with me still against the shower wall. I wrap my arms around her neck.

She brings her hand back down in between us and this time lets two fingers enter me. My scream gets caught in my throat as she moves in and out of me. "I love you so much, Spencer." She says into my neck placing wet kisses on the length. But I can't speak, I'm too in the moment. I feel my body tensing and I know I'm close. "Cum for me, Spencer." She whispers in my ear and that was all I needed, I came all over her hand. She held onto me until she was sure my legs would hold me up then she put me down, my breathing still irregular. She looks into my eyes and I bit my bottom lip, flushed. "You're beautiful." She says, taking her 'unused' hand rubbing her thumb down my cheek and across my lips. I kiss her before we both turn around and shower.

* * *

><p>We're sitting on the deck now, I'm laying down on Ashley, she has her legs open, my back is to her front and my head on her chest. It's getting dark, so the sun is setting.<p>

"Spence?"

"Yeah, Ash?" I ask, sitting looking at her.

"Are you okay?" I give her a puzzled look. "I mean with everything that happened." She clarifies. I turn over so that my front is now to her front and I prop myself up on my arms.

"I'm prefect. You're perfect. If we could have babies, Ash... They'd be perfect." I smile and she giggles.

"Not really what I was asking, but okay." She smiles and I turn back over.

"I'm fine, Ash. You were perfect." I say and she wraps her arms around my neck.

"I love you, Spencer Carlin." She barely whispers.

"I love you, too." I smile as we watch the sunset.

* * *

><p>"Thank you for today. It was perfect, beyond perfect. I really need to find a new word don't I?" I say shaking my head at myself as we pull into my driveway.<p>

"Well, you are pretty perfect, so I think that word fits you just fine." She puts the car in park and looks at me.

"Well thank you baby." I smile.

"Can I pick you up for school tomorrow?"

"Ash, you would have to wake up super early." I tell her and she smiles.

"I always wake up super early. I don't even have a first period Spence. I just go early to see you." Now if that isn't the cutest thing in the world.

"Aw. Ash." I grab her and pull her into a hug. "You're so freaking amazing." I say in her ear.

"Not as amazing as you." She says as we pull back.

"Of course you can get me for school. I'll be ready at seven." I tell her opening the car door.

"I'll be here. I miss you already." She yells as I shut the door. I smile at her before I make my way in the house.

How did I get so freaking lucky?

* * *

><p>I hope you guys enjoyed this. Review and let me know.<p> 


	17. Chapter 16 Exposed Part 1

**Chapter 16**

"Good morning, baby." Ashley greets me as I get into her car.

"Morning." I smile then reach over and hug her.

"Is there any particular reason you wanted to come get me for school this morning?"

"Besides the fact that I would miss you terribly if I didn't see you until lunch, everyday?... no." She smiles, then puts the car in reverse and backs out of the driveway.

The entire car ride to school was silent. But not that awkward silence where we were uncomfortable but the just right kinda silence. She grabbed my hand after pulling out of the driveway, kissed my palm, then held it for the rest of the ride to school.

The whole scene was quite adorable. It took everything I had not to get her to pull the car over and attack her on the side of the road.

"So, I'll see you at lunch then?" She asks as we pull into the schools parking lot.

"Of course." I give her a small smile before unbuckling my seat belt and grabbing my bag from the backseat.

"Can we eat off campus today? Just me and you, maybe?" She asks, timidly. Aw.

"Sure baby. I just gotta break the news to Madison." I laugh at little and what I think Madison's reaction will be.

"Kay. I love you." She tells me as I open the door.

"I love you, too." I say as I shut the door and head towards my first period. My phone buzzes. I look down and see it's a text from Ashley.

_'I miss you already.'_ It reads.

_'I miss you more. Only four hours until I see you again.' _I reply as I make my way in the class and to my seat.

'_Four looooong hours.' _She texts back. I smile at my phone and look up to say something to Madison when I realize that she isn't here.

I scroll though my call log then quickly text her. '_Where are you? You're never late for first period, you love Mr. Fitz.' _I text Madison and a couple seconds later I receive a text back.

_'I think I have like a bug or something. Mom says no school today. Sorry chica. I know how much you hate being a school alone.' _

'_Don't worry about me. You get better. Can I bring you soup later or are you contagious?'_ I text her back.

_'Mom will have gloves and a mask waiting for you at the door. '_

_'Lol. Gotta love that woman. I'll see you around five.'_

_'K. Love you.'_

_'Love you, too. Feel better. :('_

I quickly text Ashley, _'Madison is at home sick today so I didn't have to give her the I want some alone time with my girlfriend for lunch so can I ditch you today, speech. Yay! :)'_

_'Haha. I'm glad. I'll meet you at my car as soon as third block ends okay?' _

_'Kay.' _I text back. You know... I still never asked her how she gets to leave for lunch when she's only a junior. Probably has something to do with her dad.

Class went by super slow, especially considering the fact that I didn't have Madison to talk to. Carmen didn't show up for class either but I'm not really sure if we're ever going to be able to go back to how we were before this year. It just feels weird, you know?

When the bell rang for lunch, I hurriedly made my way out of class to Ashley's car. Where she was standing waiting for me.

"How'd you get here so fast?" I asks as she unlocks the door and we both get in.

"Mr. Kanton let us out early." She shrugs, putting the key in the ignition, starting the car. "So, where to for lunch?" She asks, looking over at me.

"Um... I don't know. I thought you had this all planned out since you're the one that asked _me_ to lunch." I say smugly and she rolls her eyes playfully.

"Fine. Spencer Carlin the diva. I just thought maybe you would want to go somewhere with a buffet, you know, since you can eat like a whole cow." She smirks as she puts the car in drive and we pull out of the parking lot.

"Oh, that's funny is it?" I ask playfully.

"Pretty funny. But also a fact." She says seriously, looking at me. "I still love you, though." I small smile plays at her lips.

"Nice save, Davies." I hit her on the arm and we both giggle.

"How about we go to Fatburger. I heard it's pretty good." She tells me as she makes a right turn.

"I bet it's not better than In and Out Burger." I counter.

"I never said it was, Spence." She laughs.

"Oh." I join in on the laughter. "Okay, lets go there then." I say as she makes a left turn.

"Okay crazy."

* * *

><p>"This is so good." I tell her as I take a bite out of my 24oz burger. Yep, I got the biggest burger on the menu. XXXL, 24oz's of pure beefy goodness. I also got a shake and some skinny fries. And just for the record... soooo much better than In and Out Burger.<p>

"I can see that." My girlfriend says giggling at me. While I went for the biggest burger on the menu, effectively proving to my girlfriend that I can indeed eat an entire cow, she went for the smallest also known as a Baby Fat burger, only 2.5oz's. Lightweight. She ordered that with some Onion Rings and a Strawberry Shake.

I swallow the food in my mouth before saying, "This is so much better than In and Out." Then I take another humongous bite. Causing my girlfriend to giggle at me some more.

"You know my birthday's coming up in a few weeks, Spence." She says, stuffing a fry in her mouth.

My head shoots up. I indeed did _not_ know her birthday was coming up. She never mentioned it. Ugh, I'm a bad girlfriend aren't I?

Once again, I swallow my burger before answering, "No! You never said anything about it. What do you wanna do for it?" I ask, cramming some fries in my mouth, then taking a sip of my Chocolate Shake.

"Well, seeing as though I already got what I wanted then I guess we can just pretend like it's just another day." I give her a puzzled look. "You silly, you're my gift." Aww.

"Baaaby. If that's not the cutest thing ever!" I shriek, a little louder than intended. "But, no. That's not gonna work. I need to do something special for you. It's gonna be kinda hard to top what you did for me but by golly I'm gonna try." I say with the full arm motion and everything.

I look up to see her body shaking in laughter. "Did you..." She tries to calm her breathing. "Did you just..." She's having a hard time breathing, cause she's laughing so hard.

"Ash?"

She finally calms her breathing and says, "Did you just say by golly?" She asks, erupting into laughter once again.

"Oh, shut up. It wasn't that funny." I say seriously and she stops laughing and makes a pouty face.

"Awww. I'm sorry. Did I hurt my Spencers' feelings."

"No." I tell her. My face matching hers. She changes her face to a smile as she gets up from her side of the booth and joins me on my side.

"I'm sorry." She leans forward and whispers in my ear. I don't know why every single time she gets close to me, tingles shoot up my spine. "You know, when you pout, you're really sexy." She says in a raspy voice that I barely even recognize. Okay, this is so not the place to be turning me on.

"Um...uh...um..." I try and think of something to say to get out of this compromising position I've found myself in, but honestly, I got nothing.

"You know, we could totally blow off the rest of school and head back to my place. My dad's not home, I'm sure." She continues to whisper in my ear, but this time she takes the tip of my ear in between her teeth.

"Uh..um.." Still nothing.

"I'll take that as a yes." She says then takes my lips in hers. Right now, I'm feeling something I've never felt in one of our kisses before. I don't know what it is exactly or how to explain it. All I know, is that right now, I need to be at her house in her bed.

"Let's go." I say into her lips as I yank her up from the booth and start trudging towards the door.

"But Spence, you didn't finish your burger."

"Fuck that burger." I say in a voice that I don't even recognize as my own. I hear her giggle before I practically rip off her car door and throw her inside, then walking around to the drivers side and speeding off.

We get to Ashley's house in record time. I broke about seven laws. I even ran a couple of red lights. Meh, whatever. I basically dragged her into her house and up to her room, ripping off clothes in the process.

"I want you so fucking bad." I say into her lips as we finally make it into her room. I slam her back into the door shutting it and a small whimper escapes her lips.

"Spence." She says, pulling back. I whimper missing her lips already. "Can I just say that horny you, is so fucking hot?" She tells me then reconnects our lips. We stumble our way onto her bed and she pushes me down on it, straddling me, before bringing our lips back together in a lust filled kiss. The only thing I'm wearing is my pants and panties, my bra and shirt got discarded somewhere on the steps, or maybe in the hall. Ashley is almost completely naked, only wearing her panties. I'm not even sure where the rest of her clothes are. They might have been removed on the car ride here.

"I want you to fuck me." I say into her lips and she looks up at me shocked. The first time Ashley and I had sex I barely said a word, honestly, I was nervous, but who wouldn't be when it's there first time with a girl, right? But right now, I could care less about anything but her fingers buried deep in me while I scream out her name in ecstasy. "Ashley, please." I beg her. I mean, she's just staring at me. Who does that? When your girlfriend tells you to fuck her, you fuck her!

She takes her left hand that was buried in my hair and brings it down in between us popping the button and unzipping the zipper on my pants. She is moving way too slow right now. I lightly push her off me then stand up, removing both my pants and panties in one swift motion before laying back down on the bed and pulling her shocked self back on top of me.

"Spence?" She questions as she unconsciously licks her lips. I take her hand and suck on two of her fingers before guiding that hand down between us and pushing those two fingers in me.

"Fuuuuck!" We both moan out as her fingers enter me.

"You're so wet." She leans down and whispers in my ear, only making me that much wetter. As her fingers stroke in and out of me I know that I'm close.

"Ashley." I moan out and she knows what's coming.

"No." She says then stops moving her fingers. My eyes shoot open and scan hers for an answer to why she just stopped. "You are not coming before I taste you, this time." She says before removing her fingers out of me and scooting down, positioning her head between my legs. She takes one long lick and I damn near lose my mind. I have never felt such pleasure in my life.

"A..Ash...Ashleeeeey." I scream as she starts to circle my clit with her tongue. She's really good at this. But I might be biased cause this is the first time I've... "Ooooh my Goooood. I'm gonna cum, Ashley." I tell her as she inserts two fingers in me while her tongue still works on my clit. My fingers get lost in her hair as my hips jump to meet her fingers.

"Cum for me, Spencer. I wanna taste you." She mumbles into my pussy and I cum immediately into her mouth. She lays her tongue flat as she licks up all my juices and swallows them down. She quickly crawls up the length of my body and lays down beside me.

"I wanna..." I start as I try and control my breathing. I swallow before resuming, lifting my head up and propping myself up on my elbow, looking at her, "I wanna do you." She turns her head to face me, blinking her eyes a few times.

"Spence, you don't have to..."

"No." I say cutting her off. "I want to. I just... I might be bad at it." I tell her and she smiles.

"It's fine. I'm not rushing you." She leans up and kisses me, I can taste myself on her tongue.

"But..."

"When the time is right." She says putting a finger to my mouth. "In the mean time." She starts straddling me again. "I think I'll go for round two." She smile as she makes her way back down between my legs.

"Ashley, you don't have to... ooooooooh!" My sentence is cut short. I guess round two it is. And round three and four and five. I think we had sex for like two hours straight. Every time I came she gave me like a minute to recover before she went at it again. After many hours of pleasure we finally convinced ourselves that we would at least try and make it to the last period of the day. I needed to pick up my homework from all the classes I missed.

As we pulled into the schools parking lot, I felt uneasy. Like something bad was about to happen. You ever get that feeling? Ashley must've of sensed it.

"You okay, Spence?" She asks, putting the car in park.

I look at her and give her a small smile before replying, "Perfect." I tell her and she leans forward and kisses me.

As we exit the car I'm so tempted to hold her hand but I restrain myself and we bump shoulders and giggle as we make our way to last period. When we got in last period, we were about five minutes late, everyone turned and stared at us. It was like in a movie, how everything stops, and all eyes were focused on Ashley and I as we entered the class. Then all of a sudden the classroom erupted into chatter. Whispering and staring.

The teacher beckoned everyone to quiet down but it was no use. People kept whispering and staring... I don't know what the hell is going on but I know I have a bad feeling about it. After about twenty minutes the teacher finally got everyone to settle down and she continued with the lesson.

When the bell rang for class to be over I told Ashley I would meet her at car, that I was going to get my work from all my other teachers. As I walked down the hall to my Science class I noticed everyone watching me as I walked past them and they were all holding something. I noticed that people would look down at it, then back up at me with shocked looks on their faces. I then noticed a bunch of pictures scattered around the halls but I couldn't make out what was on them so I bent down and picked one up.

'Oh. My. God.' I keep repeating to myself as I stare down at the picture in my hand. It was a picture of me and Ashley at Fatburger, today, when we were kissing. What the hell?

"Oh look here's one of the dykes now." I heard a familiar voice yell from down the hall. I look up and see Carmen emerge from behind a group of people, making her way towards me.

"Carmen?" I question as I hold the picture out in front of me. "How could you?" I ask in disbelief that my so call 'friend' would stalk me to take a picture of me and my girlfriend kissing, make copies, and hand them out to everyone at school.

"How could I what, Spencer? Expose you for the dyke you are? Along with your little friend dyke Davies." She says smirking.

"Really, Carmen?" I spit out. I'm hurt, beyond hurt really. I don't get what she thinks this will solve. We've already been over this. She can't break me and Ashley up.

"Look, Carlin. We were friends once. Back before you decided to become a carpet muncher. I told you to stop hanging around, Davies. I tried to inform you about her past." She pauses looking around at the crowd that has now formed around us. I'm almost sure I saw Aiden standing in that crowd of jocks behind Carmen. "But you wouldn't listen, now look what's happened. She's turned you into a lesbian." I don't say anything for a minute so she says, "What's wrong? Cat got your tongue, Spence?" She starts laughing and soon the crowd joins in. I don't even get what's funny.

I don't know what to say. I'm not even really sure _what_ to say at this point. It's out. Ashley and I's relationship has been exposed. And I'm sure as hell am not gonna deny what my relationship with Ashley.

Should I tell everyone about what Carmen just told me a couple days ago? Expose her? Be the evil conniving person that she has become?

No.

I won't stoop to her level.

I grab her shirt and lead her into the class room across from us and shut the door.

"What the hell, Carmen?" I almost scream at her. Her face drops, it's not the smug/evil look she was giving me just a second ago. "I don't understand. Could you please fucking explain this to me?" She averts her gaze. Making sure to look anywhere but at me. "Two fucking days ago you told me that you were in love with me and now you go and do some shit like this? What did you even apologize for, Carmen?" I can't help the tears that have started to fall.

She looks up and sees that I'm crying and takes a step towards me. "Spence."

"Don't!" I tell her as her hand reaches up to touch my face. "You apologize and then continue to ruin my life." I say through sobs.

"I'm in love with you, Spencer. And that's not gonna just go away. You chose her!" She yells. I peak around her and see that a crowd has formed outside the classroom we're in. "You chose her over me." She says a little quieter this time, noticing the crowd, too. "I couldn't just deal with that. How did you expect me to take that? I've known you since ninth grade, Spence. What does she have that I don't?" She questions. Her eyes searching my face for an answer.

"A heart." I spit out, then push her out of the way to exit the room. The crowd parts like the red sea as I fling the door open and make my way towards the parking lot. As I am making my way through the crowd, tears still cascading down my face, I see Aiden by some lockers. He catches my eye and gives me a small, pained smile. As least I know he's not mad at me.

As I reach the parking lot, Ashley is leaning up against her car staring down at her phone, she looks up at me and smiles, but her smile quickly fades when she sees my tears. She immediately rushes to my side.

"Spencer what's wrong?" She asks, trying to wipe the tears away. It's no use, they just keep falling. I wordlessly hand her the picture and get in the car. She stares at it for a moment. Her mouth slack, and her eyes wide, before she joins me in the car. "Who... how... what happened?" She stumbles over her words, not really sure of which answer she wants to know first.

We sit quietly for a moment until I finally get my breathing under control enough to explain what happened. "I'm guessing Carmen followed us today and when we kissed she took pictures." I pause for a second and look over at her, she's just looking down at the picture in her hand. "She made a bunch of copies and gave them to everyone in the school. I just confronted her about it in the hall, but she didn't really have a reason." I never told Ashley about Carmen's feelings for me. I didn't wanna complicate things more.

We both don't say anything for a while. I just continue to sniffle. She breaks the silence, "Are you okay?" She asks, in a whisper.

The tears start to fall once again. "My mom, Ashley. She's gonna find out and I..." I try and speak through sobs. "I don't know what she's gonna do." You see, I'm not mad that the whole school knows about me and Ashley. Really, I could care less. What I do care about is certain people knowing and those certain people telling their parents, who just so happen to go to my moms church. I know that someone has probably called someone, who has called someone else, who has called my mom and told her about the picture. I'm so not ready to go home. But I knew this day would come, eventually. I was just hoping it woulda been a year from now after I've graduated and not in need of my families money to live on, and their roof to sleep under. And I know what you're thinking. Ashley's loaded, why not just go live with her, or live _off_ her, for the rest of your life?

I don't want to be that girl. That girl that needs her girlfriend for every little thing. I have no job, no money, no place to live if I get kicked out and they can even take my car away since technically they own it. Although, my grandma bought it for my 16th birthday. It's in their name. They pay the insurance.

So what does that leave me, exactly?

Nothing...

"You wanna come to my house for a while?"

"No." I sigh. "I need to get this over with now. If not today, I'm gonna have to hear about it sometime." She nods her head as we pull off. I am so not looking forward to this...

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><p>As you can see this chapter is a two part-er. Next part will be posted on Tuesday. Hopefully, I'll have it written by then. :) Enjoy and Review.<p> 


	18. Chapter 17 Exposed Part 2

**Chapter 17**

When we pulled into my driveway my heart was beating so fast I could hear it. "You want me to go in with you?" Ashley asks as she put the car in park. I look over and give her a small smile.

"No, I think this is something I need to do on my own." I tell her and she grabs my hand and squeezes it.

"I understand. I'm not gonna go far so just call me if you need me okay?" She tells me, squeezing my hand once more.

"Okay."

"I love you, Spencer. Okay? Nothing and no one is gonna change that. I'll be here if you need me, I'm not going anywhere."

"I love you, too." I tell her then exit the car. She backs out of the driveway as I make my way up to the door, willing myself to go in. I finally turn the door knob and go in.

"Spencer!" My moms voice immediately calls me from the living room. I walk into the living room to find my whole family and a priest. "Spencer..." My mom starts, walking up to me. "I'm gonna ask you this one time, and one time only. Are you and that girl together?"

I look past my mom to see my dad and brother looking down, probably here involuntarily, and the priest staring at me with questioning eyes as he holds his bible close to his chest. Really mom? A Priest?

I don't wanna lie to her, I'm not gonna deny Ashley. I love her and my mom can't stop me. Or some Priest for that matter.

"Yes." I say simply. Not like I need to go into details about it. Her breath hitches and she covers her mouth with her hand, averting her gaze away from me. "Mom, I love her." I admit quietly, glancing over at my brother and father whose eye's are still glued to the ground. The Priest looks like he wants to say something, but I guess he's waiting his turn.

My mom goes to say something but I guess it gets caught in her throat. "Mrs. Carlin, may I?" The Priest asks stepping forward, placing a hand on my moms shoulder. She nods and he steps closer to me, with a small smile on his face. "Spencer, dear. I'm Father O'Harra." He extends out his hand for me to shake and I take it. No need to be rude to him, it's not his fault my mom dragged him into this. "Would you like to sit?" He questions and I shake my head.

"Look, Father. I don't wanna be rude, cause I know that you were called here by my mother. But I love Ashley and nothing and no one is gonna change my mind." I tell him and he nods his head.

"I know things sometimes can become a bit confusing when you're a teenager. Feelings and emotions start developing, and everything becomes one big blur. If we look at the big picture, the picture God has created for us, then we'll see that these events merely are there to test your faith, nothing else." He tells me calmly.

"Father, I..." I start.

"You're gonna go to hell, Spencer. Do you understand that?" My mom cuts me off. And I can see the tears now forming in her eyes. I don't get why this hurts her so much, this is my life, let me live it. My dad is now on his feet at my moms side consoling her. Why is he consoling her for? I'm the one under attack here. Thanks dad!

"Mom, I know that right now all this seems bad, and I'm sorry if I embarrass you but this is who I am. Ashley is who I wanna be with." I say stepping closer to her, but she moves back like I'm diseased.

"That girl has changed you. You're not my daughter, I don't know who you are." She spits out.

"I'm the same Spencer, mom." I don't know why I feel the need to defend myself. She's never gonna understand.

"No, you're not." She says, detaching herself from my fathers grasp. "And you're gonna live under my roof you're not allowed to see that girl anymore!" She yells, causing my brother's head to shoot up, and my dad to try and calm her.

"Paula." He says softly, but she's not paying him any attention. She's looking directly at me, eyes filled with venom.

"I'm 18 mom, you can't tell me what to do anymore and _that_ girl has a name!" I retort and she scoffs.

"If you wanna live under my roof you'll understand that you are forbidden from seeing _Ashley_." So much hate spewing from her words.

"Then I guess I'm leaving." I blurt out before I can even stop the words from falling from my lips. Everyone in the room eyes shoot to me. "I'm not gonna live in a house where the person I love and amazing, wonderful love I have for them, is not accepted." I tell them, making sure to look everyone in the eyes.

"Then leave!" My mom shouts and lunges towards me. "Get out, get out, get out!" She keeps yelling, as both my brother and dad have to hold her back. Father O'Harra just stands there like a dear caught in headlights. I guess he wasn't expecting it to go quite this way.

"Mom, please. She's your daughter" Glen tries to interject.

"Shut up, Glen!" My mom snaps at him.

"Dad?" I sorta question him. He works with teens all day. Teens that aren't even his children, I'm sure plenty have come to him and told him about stuff like this. He fights for them, he gets them in homes, and away from abusive parents, but he can't even protect his own daughter.

"Paula please, can we discuss this?" He begs her and she shakes her head viciously.

"I want her out of my house and I want her out now, Arthur." She yells and I don't even wait around for his reply as I jet off upstairs in my room to pack some things. This is really happening, everything—and all because of Carmen. I grab a duffel bag from my closet and just start opening draws and grabbing what I can. I grab the bank off my dresser which has about four hundred dollars I've saved in it. I look around my room for any other essentials that I may need, then make my way into the bathroom to grab my toothbrush. I grab my charger out of the wall and look under my bed for a couple pairs of shoes. When I emerge from under my bed Glen is standing in my door way.

"Mom says, two minutes." He tells me looking down at the ground.

"Tell her don't worry I'm done." I say as I grab my car key off the dresser. Glen and I both make our way back down the steps, my dad is in the living room talking to the Priest and my mom is standing in front of the door.

"Give me the keys to_ my_ car." She says sternly. Holding her hand out in expectancy.

"How am I supposed to get to school?" I ask, as I feel a fresh wave of tears building in my eyes.

"I could care less." She snaps back and snatches the keys out of my hand and walks away. I hold back the tears, not wanting her to see how much she was actually hurting me and hurriedly make my way out the front door. I whip out my phone to text Ashley when Glen appears behind me.

"Where you going little sis? I'll take you." He says trying to force himself to smile.

"I need to get some school books out of my car. Could you go and gets the keys from Paula real quick?" I ask him and he just shakes his head and runs back in the house. He returns a couple seconds later with the keys and I quickly open the car to retrieve my belongings from it. He runs back in the house to return the keys.

"So where to?" He asks me as we walk down the driveway to his car.

To the only place I have to go...

"To Ashley's house." I say simply. I give him an address to put in his GPS and we pull off. I turn around and take one last look at the place I once called home, at the people I once called mom and dad. I could see a silhouette behind the curtain in the living room watching us as we pulled away. I said a mental goodbye as the house...my family, disappeared in the side mirror.

Glen and I sat quietly for most of the drive, me looking out at the trees and such as we passed them.

"For the record, I like Ashley." Glen says, finally breaking the silence. I look over at him and he's looking at me smiling.

"Thanks, Glen." I smile back. It's nice to know that I still have one person in this family on my side. Love is love, why does it have to matter if it's found between two women or two men?

"You know how to chose them lil sis. Ashley's hot." He jokes and I punch him in the arm playfully. "Owww. Whaaat? I'm just saying." He shrieks out and I laugh at him.

"Just keep your eyes to yourself. She's my love." I tell him and he gives me a indiscernible look.

"What?" I ask and he just smiles.

"You really love her don't you?" He asks, looking back between me and the road.

I feel a fresh batch of tears brewing in my eyes as I answer, "Yes, I really do."

"I can tell. Do she love you the same?" He asks, this time keeping his eyes on the road.

I wipe away the tears and let a small smile form on my lips thinking about how much I know Ashley loves me. "She does." I say simply. He nods and smiles.

"She better, or she'd be getting a visit from me to have a little talk." He said all big brotherly and I can't help but smile at him.

"Thanks, Glen." I say as we put into Ashley's driveway.

"Holy shit!" He says looking at the house. "Thanks for what?" He asks, looking back at me.

"For being a really good big brother." I tell him then pull him into a hug.

"That's what I'm here for." He says as we both pull back from the hug. "Can I live with you and Ashley?" He asks seriously looking back at the house. I giggle at him before I tell him goodbye and exit his car, grabbing my bags from the backseat and lugging it all to Ashley's front door. I take a deep breath before knocking.

A flustered Ashley opens it. She engulfs me in a hug before saying, "I've been going crazy waiting for your call. I left I came home because you didn't. I'm sorry. Are you okay? What happened? Was she mad? Did she kick you out?" She asks before her eyes drift down to the bags sitting beside me. "Oh Spencer." She says pulling me into another hug. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry that our love is causing you all this pain." I can't help the fresh tears that have started to fall. By the end of today I'm gonna be all out of tears. She quickly pulls me inside and up to her room, telling her maid to grab my bags and bring them in as we ascended the stairs.

Ashley held me in her arms while I sobbed on her chest. We're laying on the bed, my heads on her chest and she has both arms around me, rubbing circles into my back trying to soothe me. I think I cried for at least thirty minutes before the crying stopped and became sniffing and whimpering.

"Did you wanna talk about it, Spence?" She asks, still rubbing circles in my back. I don't say anything. "Did you talk to Madison?" She asks suddenly.

I jump up. "Oh shit, Mads. Baby, I told her I would come over and bring her soup."

"It's okay, Spence. I'll call her and tell her that you can't today. She'll understand." She says as I lay my head back down on her chest. "I love you." She whispers then kisses the back of my head. I immediately found myself drifting off to sleep. The comfort of having her arms tightly around me, I felt safe—at home.

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><p><em>Wow, I just have to say that you guys are so freaking amazing! Thank you so much for all of the reviews. Hope you enjoy. :) Next update will be on Thursday.<em>


	19. Chapter 18 Better Together

**Chapter 18**

"Ashley?" I look around for her as I wake up no longer in her arms.

"I'm right here, baby." She emerges from the bathroom.

"I thought you'd left me." I admit in a whisper focusing my eyes on the bed.

She's by my side instantly. She grabs my face to make me look at her. "I would never leave you, Spencer. I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere. I promise." She tells me then places a barely there kiss on my forehead. I let out a content sigh and smile.

"I love you so much." I tell her as we both lay back on the bed. I'm back in her arms with my head on her chest.

"I love you too, Spence." She whispers in my ear. "Madison's here." She says suddenly, running her hand up and down my arm.

I sit up and ask, "Really?"

"Yeah, she got here a little while ago while you were sleeping. She's wearing a mask." Ashley says and laughs. "She's downstairs. She said she'd wait down there until you woke up. You want me to get her now?" She asks me.

"Please." I tell her and she kisses my forehead again before leaving to go and retrieve Madison.

"Hey chica." Madison says as she enters Ashley's bedroom. I run to her and engulf her into a hug. Not caring about her being sick, or that I could get sick too. I've never been so happy to see my best friend in my life. "Somebody's happy to see me." She giggles as we pull back from the hug.

"I missed you Maddy. Things were so bad today." I tell her and I can feel the tears threatening.

"I know. Ashley semi-informed me of what went down." She says as we both take a seat on Ashley's bed. I just noticed that Ashley didn't come in behind Madison. I guess she's giving us time to talk. "I'm gonna fucking kill, Carmen." She spits out and I can see the anger in her eyes.

"No, Mads. Don't kill her." I try and laugh it off. You don't understand, Madison really would kill, Carmen. I can't have that. "She'll get what's coming to her. Just let karma take care of it." I say with a shrug. Thankful that the tears that were threatening to fall are now gone.

"How can you be so calm about this?" She asks confused. I shrug again. "How did Paula react?" She asks and this time I can't hold back the tears. She embraces me immediately. Somewhere in the middle of my tear fest Ashley came into the room.

"Spence, baby." Ashley's now kneeling in front me, trying to wipe my tears away. "Spencer, please stop crying." She begs, as Madison gets up and Ashley takes the place she was just in. She rubs circles in my back as Madison returns with tissues, handing them to Ashley. Ashley wipes away the tears and my runny nose. After crying for a while I finally calmed myself.

"Spencer, you don't have to, but do you wanna tell us what happened?" Madison asks as she takes a seat across from me and Ashley on a small couch.

I take a deep breath before starting, "I don't know how much you know, Maddy."

"You can just start from the beginning if you want, Spence." She tells me softly.

"Okay." I say taking another deep breath. "Well, I'm guessing Carmen followed me and Ashley to Fatburger today and took pictures of us kissing, then passed the pictures out all around school. I confronted her about it and she had no real reason for doing it besides the fact that she wanted to be an asshole and break up Ashley and I. When I got home my mom was waiting with a my dad, Glen, and a Priest."

"A Priest?" Madison shrieks with an 'are you freaking serious right now' look in her eyes.

"A Priest." I repeat then continue. "So, I get in the house and she immediately questions me about Ashley. I'm guessing someone from the school told their parents who called my mom and told her, I really don't know. All I know is, when I got home she knew and she was really pissed about it. She went off on this whole thing about the bible and how it's a sin and all that. And then the Priest tried to give me a speech. I told them that I was in love with Ashley." I pause and look at her, giving her a small smile. "And that they can't keep me from her." She grabs my hand and squeezes it. "Mom wasn't too pleased about that. So I got kicked out." I finish, hoping that the water works wouldn't start again.

"Wow." Ashley and Madison both breathe out at the same time.

"It's fine." I turn to Ashley. "I love you, and I'm not gonna let my parents, Carmen, or anyone else keep me from being happy with you." I tell her with a smile and she pulls me into a hug.

"Oh, Spencer! I love you, too." She tells me in my ear.

"Alright, alright. Enough with the lovey dovey, love birds stuff, it's making the single girl in the room nauseous."

"Sorry, Madison." We say in unison and smile at our friend.

"So Spencer, what are you gonna do?" Madison asks suddenly.

"I don't really know. I mean, they took my car and I only have four hundred dollars saved." I tell my best friend. "I was gonna ask Mrs. Duarte if I could stay with you guys for a couple days until I figure something out."

"What? No, Spence!" Ashley says getting up from the bed. "Why are you trying to leave when you can stay right here?"

"Ashley." I start, standing up, too. "I don't want to be that girlfriend. I don't want you to have to take care of me." I tell her truthfully.

"I don't care, Spencer. All of this is happening because of me and I want to take care of you. Please, Spencer. Let me take care of you." She pleads, grabbing my hand.

I look back between Ashley and Madison who just shrugs.

"I can't Ashley. I don't wanna be dependent on you for everything. It's just not right." I tell her, hoping she will understand.

"This is bullshit!" She exclaims before letting my hand go and storming out of the room.

"Spencer, maybe you should just..." Madison starts.

"No, Mads." I cut her off. "I don't wanna be that girl." I tell her hoping she'll drop. She nods her head. "You think your mom will let me stay?" I ask and she laughs.

"Spencer, my mom freaking loves you. She would much rather have you for a daughter than me." She says as she finally controls her laughter. "Where's your stuff?" I look around Ashley's room and see that it's not here.

"Um, I don't know. Ashley put it somewhere for me." I tell her.

"I'll go ask her what she did with you. Why don't you go get cleaned up before we go."

"Do I look that bad?" I ask and she smiles.

"Like shit." She replies as she leaves the room.

"Thank you for the vote of confidence.." I yell to her back and giggle at my best friend. I go in the bathroom and splash some water on my face and fix my hair. When I walk back out into Ashley's room, about ten minutes later, she's standing there holding a guitar. "Ashley?" I question, confused.

"Sit." She says simply, pointing to the bed. I comply. "Um, we both know that I'm better at expressing myself through song so I wrote this and I want you to listen." She says and strums her guitar.

"Wait, you just wrote this?" I question. She gives me a puzzled look.

"Like, just now when I walked out?" She asks with scrunched eyebrows

"Yeah."

"Don't be crazy, Spencer. I can't write a song in five minutes, It takes me at least a couple of hours. Now be quiet and listen." She tells me again as she strums her guitar and starts singing...

_There is no combination of words I could put on the back of a postcard  
>No song that I could sing, but I can try for your heart<br>Our dreams, and they are made out of real things  
>Like a, shoebox of photographs<br>With sepia-toned loving  
>Love is the answer,<br>At least for most of the questions in my heart  
>Like why are we here? And where do we go?<br>__And how come it's so hard?  
>It's not always easy and<br>Sometimes life can be deceiving  
>I'll tell you one thing, it's always better when we're together<em>

_Mmm, it's always better when we're together_  
><em>Yeah, we'll look at the stars when we're together<em>  
><em>Well, it's always better when we're together<em>  
><em>Yeah, it's always better when we're together<em>

_And all of these moments_  
><em>Just might find their way into my dreams tonight<em>  
><em>But I know that they'll be gone<em>  
><em>When the morning light sings<em>  
><em>And brings new things<em>  
><em>For tomorrow night you see<em>  
><em>That they'll be gone too<em>  
><em>Too many things I have to do<em>  
><em>But if all of these dreams might find their way<em>  
><em>Into my day to day scene<em>  
><em>I'd be under the impression<em>  
><em>I was somewhere in between<em>  
><em>With only two<em>  
><em>Just me and you<em>  
><em>Not so many things we got to do<em>  
><em>Or places we got to be<em>  
><em>We'll sit beneath the palm tree now<em>

_Yeah, it's always better when we're together_  
><em>Mmm, we're somewhere in between together<em>  
><em>Well, it's always better when we're together<em>  
><em>Yeah, it's always better when we're together<em>

_Mmm, mmm, mmm_

_I believe in memories_  
><em>They look so, so pretty when I sleep<em>  
><em>Hey now, and when I wake up,<em>  
><em>You look so pretty sleeping next to me<em>  
><em>But there is not enough time,<em>  
><em>And there is no, no song I could sing<em>  
><em>And there is no combination of words I could say<em>  
><em>But I will still tell you one thing<em>  
><em>We're better together.<em>

"So you see, Spencer. You can't go." She says walking over to me, sitting her guitar down next to me on the bed. "Things are so much better when we're together." She finishes with a huge grin. I can't help the smile that spreads across my face too.

I pull her into a hug. "You totally just wrote that." I say as we pull back.

"I totally did." She smiles. "It's not hard to write with you as my inspiration. It all just comes to me." She tells me and I can't help but grin stupidly as Madison walks back in the room looking tired and sweating.

"You ready, Spence?"

"Um, actually Mads, I think I'm just gonna stay here. But just for a couple days, until I figure out what I'm gonna do." I say, directing the last part at Ashley who just shakes her head enthusiastically. I'm guessing she's just happy I'm staying at all.

Madison blows out a puff of hair causing her bangs to fly up before saying, "I am so not lugging your shit back outta my car." Ashley and I both laugh.

"It's okay, Madison I'll get Juan to do it." Ashley tells an exhausted Madison.

"Really, Juan?" Madison said giving Ashley a look.

"What? You asked me where the bags where, you never said you were about to go and be superwoman and lug them all to your car." Ashley counters with a smile.

"You know what, I don't even have the energy, Davies." Madison says with a smile, flopping down on the the couch she just vacated. Ashley kisses me then tells me that she's going to tell Juan to get the stuff from Madison's car, before leaving the room.

"You two are infectiously cute." Madison smiles at me.

"Speaking of infections, where did your mask go, sickly? Am I gonna catch whatever you have?" I ask playfully backing up from her.

"I don't know." She shrugs. "Probably." She smiles then stands up. "Are you gonna be okay, Spence? Like, really okay?"

I think about Ashley and immediately know the answer. "I think so, yeah." I tell my best friend with the hugest grin plastered on my face.

"The cuteness of you two is so freaking sickening, I swear." Madison shakes her head before giving me a hug. "Call me if you need me, I don't care what time, Spence. Call me and I'll come, okay?" She asks pulling back from me but still holding my shoulders.

"Okay. I promise." I tell my best friend. She gives me another small smile before exiting Ashley's room.

Everything's gonna be _just_ fine...

* * *

><p><em>Hope you enjoyed this... Comment and let me know. The song is Better Together by Jack Johnson. I suggest youtube-ing it if you never heard it. It's a great song. Next update will be Sunday. Thanks for reading everyone.<em>


	20. Chapter 19 One And Only

**Chapter 19**

"So, what do you wanna do tonight?" Ashley asks me as she enters back into the room.

"I was thinking that I could do something for you, for once. You know, to thank you." I tell her as she comes and sits next to me on the bed.

"What do you mean?"

"Well," I start, placing a chaste kiss on her lips. She whimpers as I pull back causing me to smile. "I was thinking that I could cook for you." I tell her and she giggles. "What?" I ask confused.

"Spence you know that we have a chef."

"Yeah, I know. But I wanna do something to show my appreciation. You know, for letting me stay here."

"Spence you don't have to-"

"I know." I cut her off. "But I want to."

"Okay, Spence." She says with a nose crinkling smile.

"Kay, good." I reply as I take her hand and lead her downstairs to the kitchen. "I was thinking something like Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo Pasta." I say and she just smiles. "I'm a really good cook, Ash."

"Whaaaat? I didn't say anything." She throws her hands up in defense.

"I know what you're thinking though."

"Spence," She starts, moving closer to me. "I have no doubt in my mind that you can be amazing at anything you set your mind to." She whispers in my ear and takes it in her mouth as she finishes. Tingles.

"Ashley." I rasp out.

"Hmm?" She asks, now placing barely there kisses on my neck.

"If you don't back up from me right now." I pause and let out a small moan as she takes my neck in between her teeth. "I'm gonna take you right here on this counter." I say barely in a whisper.

She pulls back and a small smirk plays at her lips. "Is that a promise?" She asks, before reattaching her lips to my skin.

I groan before I reluctantly push her off. "I really wanna cook for you." I convince myself. I mean, there are some other things that I would love to be doing more, at this moment.

"Are you trying to convince me or yourself, Spence?" She asks, now giggling at me.

"Just, go make yourself useful by I don't know, setting the table or something." I tell her as I make my way to the fridge, taking out the ingredients I will need to make my masterpiece.

"Fiiiine." She whines out and retreats to the dinning room. "Wait." She says running back into the kitchen. "I got a better idea. How about we watch a movie while we eat?"

"Um, okay." I say and laugh at her. "You pick." I tell and she nods and smiles before running into the living room.

After making my pasta and putting some in a bowl for Ashley and I, I made my way into the living room and Ashley is holding up two movies.

"The Notebook or A Walk To Remember?" She asks, holding out each respective movie as she names them.

"Really, Ashley? You wanna cry all over this nice pasta I just made for you?" I joke but not really. Ashley can never make it through either of these movies without crying her eyes out.

"I so do not cry over either of these movies, Spence." She tells me trying to keep a serious face.

"Right." I say as I take a seat on the couch, placing both bowls of pasta on the table. "The Notebook." I say finally and she smiles.

"Very good choice, Spence." She says, jumping up and putting the DVD in. She comes and snuggles up to me on the couch after grabbing both our bowls off the table handing me mine. "Spence." She says as the movie starts.

"Yeah, Ash?" I ask, before putting a fork full of pasta in my mouth. Mmm.

"I love you." She says sweetly. I look at her and she's staring at me smiling.

"I love you, too." I tell her giving her a small smile too.

We both turn and watch the movie, enjoying our pasta and each others company.

Halfway through the movie, like I knew she would, Ashley was crying so hard I could barely hear it—the movie that is.

"It's just so sad." She looks at me and says through sobs. Oh how attractive my girlfriend is right now...that's sarcasm by the way for all you slow folks out there. I nod my head at her and smile, trying to hold back my laughter. I don't know why Ashley always cries over these movies and I never do. Shrug.

"You want me to turn it off, Ashley?" I ask slowly, still trying to stifle my laughter. She shakes her head. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah..." _sniffle _"I'm..." _sniffle_ "Gonna..." _sniffle_ "Be fine."

"Okay baby." I say nodding my head. But she wasn't fine. She cried the whole rest of the movie. Good thing I already saw it.

"That was so good." Ashley says like she's never seen the movie before. I just burst out laughing. I tried to hold it in. I really did. But this girl... my girlfriend is freaking crazy. "Oh, it's funny is it?" Ashley says, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"I'm sorry. It's just... you were crying so hard and it was... I tried to-" I try and get out between fits. I'm laughing too hard right now.

"You're so mean." She says with a pouty face.

"Aw, I'm sorry baby." I tell her, calming my laughter. "Forgive me?" I ask, as she moves closer to me. My breath hitches when she moves so close that we're not even an inch apart. "I-" I start but she cuts me off with her lips. She pulls me down on the floor and lays on top of me, never breaking our kiss.

"Tell me you're sorry again." She breaks the kiss, and whispers in my ear.

"I'm sorry." I tell her, looking dead in her eyes.

A small smirk plays at her lips before she says, "Now, beg for mercy."

"Huh?" I ask, confused.

"Beg for mercy, Spencer." She tells me again before she starts tickling. Oh, so not fair. She knows I'm super ticklish.

"Ash...leeeeey. Please.. I... oh my god...stop" I laugh out.

"Say mercy." She says continuing to tickle me. I refuse to give in so I try and grab her hands to hold them. She's being really evasive and she's freakishly strong.

"Okay... okay..." I say and she stops tickling me. We stare each other in the eyes before I open my mouth to speak but quickly close it.

"I'm waiting." She says with a smile, positioning her hands to begin another tickle fest.

"Okay." I say glancing at her hands then back into her eyes, matching her smile. I think for a second on how to turn the tables and I figure it out. I quickly lift my head up and kiss her, catching her off guard. I immediately deepen the kiss, hoping maybe it'll make her forget. She brings her hands to the back of my head, letting her fingers get lost in my hair. I put my hands on her waist and squeeze it. She moans into the kiss, letting her tongue battle for dominance with mine. When I realize she's good and into the kiss, I use all my strength to lift her and flip us over. I'm now on top of a stunned Ashley, laughing my ass off. "Oh my, how the tables have turned." I smirk.

"You little cheater!" She yells and tries to push me off her. It's no use. I'm putting all my weight down.

"Say mercy." I say readying my hands to tickle her.

"No." She says simply, looking me dead in my eyes.

"You sure?" I ask her moving my hands closer to her belly.

"I'll never say...ahhhh" She screams as I start tickling her. Her weakness... she's more ticklish than me.

"Say mercy." I say as she tries to swat my hands away.

"No never." She laughs out.

"Ashley you better say mercy or I'm gonna keep tickling you." I tell her as my fingers dance all over her belly.

"Spencer...I...can't...breathe." She says between fits.

"Ahem." Someone clears their throat behind us. We both turn and see it's Raife. We both quickly jump up like we were doing something that we weren't supposed to be doing. Even tough me being on top of her was totally innocent.

Well, mostly innocent.

"Hey dad." Ashley says with a embarrassed smile.

"Hello, daughter. You two having fun?" He asks with a raised eyebrow.

"Um..." Ashley starts then looks down shyly.

"Hey, Raife." I speak up. "How are you doing this evening. Lovely night isn't it?" Ashley head shoots to me. I have no idea why I'm talking like this. I shrug and she smiles.

"Evening, Spencer. Not that I'm not happy to see you, but can I ask, what might you be doing here so late on a school night?" He asks, directing the question at Ashley really. I glance up at the wall clock and see that it's now 10:40p.m. Wow, time flies when you're having fun.

"Um..." I start.

"Dad, Spencer got kicked out." Ashley interrupts me. Raifes entire demeanor changes.

"Oh." He says simply. I guess seeking an explanation.

"Her mom kicked her out when she found out about us." Ashley continues.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that, Spencer."

"Yeah, so I was wondering if she could stay here for a couple days." Ashley says and my head shoots to her. I thought she had already asked if I could stay over. This is so embarrassing. What if he says no?

"Ashley..." He says in a tone. He's gonna say no. I know he's gonna say no.

"Dad please, all the stuff that's happening to her, it's my fault. You have to let her stay here, please!" She begs him.

I turn to her, forgetting Raife was even in the room. "This isn't your fault. Don't you ever think for one second any of this is because of you. The only thing you have ever done for me is help me discover who I already was. And I thank you for that. My mother would have reacted this way whether it had been you, or some other girl, Ashley. So don't ever say this is your fault. Got it?" I tell her sternly and she just shakes her head. I turn back to Raife, "It's okay if you're not alright with me staying here, Sir-" I start and he waves me off.

"Nonsense. I don't mind you staying here, Spencer. The only thing that concerns me is what your parents may do if they find out-" He says and I shake my head.

"Oh no, I'm 18. They can't do anything." I tell him and he smiles.

"18 huh?" He says and averts his gaze to Ashley who just smiles and looks down. I guess she didn't tell him that I was two years older than her. "Well, in that case, you're welcome to stay as long as you like, Spencer."

"Okay, thank you Sir."

"I leave for work pretty early in the morning, so I won't be here to make sure you two get off to school, but please don't let me hear from one of the staff that you two stayed home in the bed all day." He says quirking an eyebrow.

"Yes Sir." Ashley and I say in unison.

"Okay." He says giving us a small smile, then winking. "Goodnight you two." He adds, turning towards the steps.

"Good night dad."

"Good night, Mr. Davies." He stops and turns to me. "I mean, Raife." I quickly correct myself and he smiles and says another goodnight before reaching his room and shutting the door.

Ashley turns to me with a smile. "Dad says you can stay as long as you like."

"A few days, Ashley." I say and her smile turns into a pout.

"Fine." She says poking out her lip. I kiss it.

"You ready for bed? We do have school tomorrow." I say taking her hand in mine.

"I've been ready." She smirks.

"We're going straight to bed, Ashley. Or I could sleep down here on the couch." I say quirking an eyebrow.

"No!" She half yells, causing me to giggle. "I'll behave, I promise."

"Kay. Good." I say as we ascend the stairs. When we get to the top my phone rings. I take it out of my back pocket and look at who is calling.

"Who is it?" She asks, eyes filled with concern. I guess I must be making a face.

"My dad." I say silently and debate on whether or not I should even answer it.

"Are you gonna answer it?" She asks as my phone continues to ring.

"I don't know if I should." I tell her truthfully and she takes the phone out of my hand, making the decision for me.

"Hello?" She answers my phone. "Oh, yes sir, she's right here." She lets go of my hand. "Um, I'm not sure sir. I can ask." She says then looks at me. "He wants to know if you will speak with him for a moment." She tells me covering the receiver with her hand. I stare blankly at her. Not sure of what to say. Should I talk to him? I mean, technically he wasn't the one to kick me out, but he wasn't really on my side either. Ashley gives me a knowing look, then puts the phone back to her ear. "Um, right now is not really a good time, Mr. Carlin. Is it possible for you to call back tomorrow?" Ashley asks my dad. I feel like I'm being such a coward right now. "Okay sir, will do." She says before pressing the end call button on the screen. "He says to tell you that he'll call tomorrow after school." She tells me placing the phone back in my pocket.

"Thank you." I tell her as we make our way into her room.

"You're welcome" She says simply. "Kay, let's get ready for bed baby." She tells me before placing a chaste kiss on my lips.

We both showered and then went to bed.

It's funny how with everything that happened today, I've never felt so at peace.

* * *

><p><em>AN: Support has been amazing for this story and I must say that I really really do appreciate all the love you guys have shown. It makes me really happy! Sad to say that there is only about 2 or 3 chapters left for this story... It makes me sad just thinking about it. But we all knew it had to end sometime. I haven't decided if I will do a sequel. School starts back for me tomorrow and my Masters Program is no joke so I'm not sure if I will have the time. But I will see... Next update will most likely be Tuesday. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. :)_


	21. Chapter 20 Crazy Day Part 1

**Chapter 20**

I woke up the next morning in Ashley's arms, and with all the stuff that went down last night, I was surprisingly super happy. After we both showered, separately unfortunately, we were both convinced that if we showered together we'd never make it to school. I bet you're saying hey, didn't you guys shower last night? The answer would be yes, we did. But some things went down that made us a little... sweaty, so we took another one. And for all you dirty minds out there, no we didn't have sex. I couldn't sleep so Ashley suggested that we do some yoga to relax me. And it worked, actually.

Anways, back to what I was saying. After separate showers we both got ready for school. Emilio made us breakfast. Waffles, bacon, eggs, and fresh squeezed orange juice. I could get used to this.

After breakfast we both headed to school.

"So I'll see you at lunch." Ashley tells me as she pulls in the school parking lot.

"Mhm. I love you." I say kissing her lips softly.

"I love you, too." She mumbles into the kiss. Now that everyone knows, PDA is no problem for me. Plus Ashley is super hot, it's really hard to not want to kiss her. I get out of the car and head to my first class. Madison is already in our usual seats.

"Morning bestie." I say as I take the seat next to her.

"Good morning?" She more so asks with a wicked smirk on her face.

"No, not what you're thinking." I mock insult and playfully punch her on the arm. "You mind stays in the gutter Maddy, I swear." I tell her and she just laughs.

"There is no way I'm gonna spend the night in the same bed with my hot boyfriend or in your case, girlfriend, and not have sex with them alllllll night." She says seriously.

"Well, I'm not you freak." I joke and she shrugs before taking her supplies out of her bag. "No Carmen, as usual." I observe, looking back at the seat Carmen has probably only occupied four times since school started.

"I think she's avoiding me." Madison says with a dead serious look on her face. I laugh at her. "I'm serious. I put a hit out on her. If I see her, it's going down." My best friend tells me, in a serious tone. Dragging her thumb across the base of her neck for emphasis.

"You're a riot." I tell her as the teacher comes in a begins to teach. Throughout class I kept getting all this looks from people, and there was a lot of whispering. I was over it. That's how my day was up until lunch. A classroom full of whispering and stares. I heard some people talking and the word dyke, and slut being thrown around. By the time lunch came around I didn't even wanna be at school anymore.

"What's wrong?" Ashley asks as she approaches me at me my locker.

"Really?" I asks in a tone harsher than I had intended to. The look on Ashley's face tells me that she wasn't expecting it either. "I'm sorry." I say quickly. "Today's just been really hard." I sigh and slam my locker shut.

"I know, I'm sorry." She says placing a hand on my shoulder. I move her hand and pull her into a hug. I just really needed to be close to her right now.

"I don't think I can take this." I say as I feel the tears building in my eyes. "I just wanna go home, with you." I tell her as the tears start to fall.

"Don't let them get to you baby. If you leave, you're letting them win. Show them that you don't give a shit what they think. That's what I've been doing all day." She tells me, rubbing circles in my back. As people walk by they stare as us and whisper more.

"I can't do this, Ashley." I tell her pulling back. "I just wanna go." I breathe out. She opens her mouth to say something when my phone rings letting me know I have a text. I look down and see it's from Aiden. "It's Aiden." I tell her as I open the text and read it. "He wants to know if we can go to lunch together to talk." I say and look up at Ashley. She doesn't say anything. "Um, should I?" I ask and I can tell that she's uncomfortable with the thought of me hanging out with him. "Ashley, I don't-"

"No, it's fine." She interrupts me. "Go. You and him should talk."

"Okay." I say and text Aiden yes and that I'll meet him at his car as Ashley and I walk hand in hand threw the quad to the parking lot. Getting more whispers from the students eating lunch in the quad. "I don't want you here for lunch by yourself, hang with Mads okay?" I tell her as we reach Aiden's car and place a quick kiss on her lips.

"Mmkay baby." She tells me with a smile as Aiden appears next to his car. We all share an awkward look before Ashley speaks up. "Hi, Aiden."

"Hello, Ashley." Aiden replies with a small smile.

"Take care of my girlfriend, will ya?" Ashley says and Aiden nods. "She's my everything." She adds and I can't help the smile that creeps onto my lips. She gives me another quick kiss before saying, "I'll see you last block, okay? Text me if you need me." I nod and she retreats back to the quad. I text Madison and let her know I'm going to lunch with Aiden and that Ashley is gonna have lunch with her. She texts me back a 'Okay?' I'll explain it to her later.

"You ready?" Aiden asks, looking at me over the hood of his car.

"Oh, um... yeah." I tell him and we both get into his car. I guess he could tell that I was a little uneasy about all this. But with what's been going on with everyone in my life lately, I'm not sure who I can trust.

"You okay?" He asks as we pull out of the parking lot.

"Yeah." I say giving him a small smile.

We ended up at KFC. It happens to be Aiden's favorite place.

"So." I say not really knowing how to start. I know that I hurt Aiden, and for that I am truly sorry, but I couldn't control the feelings that I was getting for Ashley. It was like some unstoppable force was pulling us together and there was no use in trying to fight it because it was a fight I couldn't win.

"You don't have to feel awkward around me, Spencer." Aiden tells me taking a bite out of his chicken.

"I know, I just... I don't get how you don't hate me." I tell him truthfully. Honestly, I really can't figure it out. If anything I would have expected him to be the one that would want to ruin my life, not Carmen.

"I could never hate you." He says swallowing the food in his mouth. "I was hurt and angry, yes, but I've never hated you for what you did, Spencer."

"I'm sorry that I hurt you, Aiden. I never wanted to. I didn't mean for things to happen the way they did. You know that right?" I ask and he shakes his head.

"I know, Spencer. I'm sorry that things happened the way they did too. I just want you to be happy. That's all I've ever wanted. It sucks that I can't be the one that makes you happy, but I'm glad you're happy nonetheless." He pauses for a moment and sighs."She makes you happy, I can see that." He says looking into my eyes. I can't help the smile that escapes my lips at the mention of Ashley. She really does make me extremely happy. "See!" He says, a smile creeping onto his lips. "All I did was say her name and it got you to smile."

"I really am happy with her, Aiden. She's like.." I start, pausing to think about all the good times I've had with her. "When I'm with her it's like nothing I've ever felt before." I say then look up at Aiden to see his face contorted in mock insult but he quickly changes it to a smile.

"Way to kick me when I'm down, Spence." He says jokingly.

"I didn't mean it like that, Aide. You know that I love you right?" I tell him truthfully, because I do. Just not in the way that I love Ashley. I'm not sure if I ever really loved him in that way.

"Yeah I know, Spence. Just not as much or in the way that you love Ashley." He says drinking his drink. Wow, he's like reading my mind. "How did Paula take the news?" Aiden asks setting his drink down.

"Not so good." I say not really wanting to even get into that. I don't wanna cry over her anymore.

"She never did like me, that woman." He says looking off like he's trying to figure out what the reason could have been. "I don't get it. Moms love me. Granted you were only my second girlfriend but even my friends moms love me. Paula is a tough nut to crack." He says then shrugs.

"She told me one time that you were too plain for me." I tell him and he almost chokes on his biscuit.

"Oh, I am anything but plain." He says in the typical jock male (I'm destined to be a pro basketball player) way.

"I never thought you were, Aide." I say with a smile. "So what made you decide to ask me to lunch?" I ask as I finally dig into my food. Surprising right?

"I wanted to let you know that there weren't any hard feelings, and that I'll always be here for you, Spence." He says and I smile.

"That really means a lot, Aiden. Thank you." I say genuinely. We sit for a while in comfortable silence eating our food before Aiden breaks the silence.

"That's not all I wanted to talk to you about." He says and I give him a look, wondering what else he could have to talk to me about.

"Uh oh, I don't like how you started that." I say quirking an eyebrow, smiling.

"Well, um... I was thinking... um... well..." He stumbles over his words.

"Aiden just spit it out." I tell him with a smile. I mean, whatever it is can't be_ that_ bad.

"Well, I wast thinking about asking Madison out." He says then pauses to gauge my reaction, I don't react so he continues. "I know that she's your best friend and I swear that when we were together I never looked at her that way, Spence. This all just recently happened and I wanted to tell you before I even thought about going up to Madison. And I'm not even sure if she's gonna say yes, but I was just gonna take a shot ya know? But I didn't wanna do anything until I talked-"

"Aiden." I say cutting him off. "Breathe." I tell him and he lets out a big puff of air. I can't help but giggle at his rant. "It's fine. I have no problem with you asking out Madison. You both deserve someone, you guys would be great together." I tell him smiling.

He matches my smile before saying, "You think so?" Aw, I think he's really nervous about asking her out.

"Yes, you're both funny, cute and semi-smart." I add with a smile and get a playful glare from Aiden.

"I'm a genius, Spence. Don't pretend like you don't know."

"Right." I say simply and we share a look before we both burst out laughing.

"So you ready to get outta here?" He asks standing up from the booth we were sharing.

"Yeah." I tell him and we throw away our trash before leaving and heading back to school.

* * *

><p>"So, Carmen has a thing for you huh?" Aiden asks as we make our way back to the school. Wow, was it that obvious to everyone but me.<p>

"You knew?" I asks and he just nods. "For how long?" He shrugs.

"I don't know, maybe since like the end of Sophomore year." He says and I give him a 'how?' look. "Do you remember the end of the school year pool party we had that year at my house?" He asks and I nod. "Well, I watched Carmen stare at you in your bikini the whole day. You never noticed cause you were too busy pretending to be straight with me." He says and I punch him in the arm. "Oww." He shrieks then laughs. "Whaaaat?"

"Don't be a jerk." I laugh out.

"I can see why Ashley, hell even Carmen, fell for you Spence. You're a great catch. Ashley's lucky."

"No, I'm the lucky one." I tell him as we pull into the school parking lot. He finds a parking spot and parks. "I had a fun time talking to you." I tell him as he puts the car in park.

"Yeah, me too." He says and gives me a small smile. "We should do it again sometime soon."

"Definitely." I say as we both exit his car.

"I was thinking, um... you think you could um... you know... talk to Madison for me? I mean, just see how she feels about me, ya know?" I smile at him.

"Yeah, Aiden. I'll talk to her." I tell him.

"Cool, thanks. You want me to walk you to class? I know things are pretty crazy around here." Can you see why I once thought he was the guy I should marry?

"No, it's fine. Thank you though." I tell him and he nods before walking off to class.

I follow his suit and make my way to my next period and to my dismay the talking, staring, and name calling hasn't died down one bit. Don't these people have lives, why are they so worried about mine?

In last period I was beyond happy to see Madison and Ashley.

"How was lunch with Aiden?" Ashley asks me as I take a seat next to her and Madison in the back of the classroom.

"Yeah, was he an ass? Cause I swear I'll kill him if he said one bad thi-"

"No." I say cutting Madison off, giggling at her. "He was the perfect gentlemen." I say and Ashley gives me a look.

"Wait, he wasn't tryna like mack on you was he? Cause I know people who can hurt him." She says quirking an eyebrow and it's so sexy.

"No, he wasn't trying to mack on me." I tell my girlfriend, who makes a 'he better not had been' face. And I can't help but smile.

"So, you and him are cool?" Madison asks.

"Yeah, he said that he's happy, if I'm happy." I say with a shrug as the teacher comes in the class.

"That's very noble of him." Madison says and smiles as the teacher beckons us to all settle down and begins to teach class. I smile thinking about the news Aiden told me about him wanting to ask out Madison. Some people would say 'oh, that's weird. Your ex-boyfriend and your best friend going out.' Personally, I think it's wonderful. They both deserve to be happy, so I say Aiden should go for it.

Last period was still filled with chatter about Ashley and I but it was a lot more manageable then the rest of my classes I had to suffer through alone. As the bell rang signaling the end of class I felt a pang in my chest thinking about my dad calling me any minute now. What is does he want? What could he possibly have to say to me now, that he couldn't say to me when my mother was practically ripping my head off?

"Can you come over to Ashley's house later?" I ask Madison as we all walk to the parking lot, Ashley and I, hand in hand. "I need to talk to you about something." I tell her and she gives me a confused look.

"Um, sure." She says reluctantly. And I giggle at her.

"It's nothing bad, Maddy. You're always so skeptical about everything." I tell her as we reach Ashley car.

"Well you're being really... I don't know... sketchy right now."

I laugh at her before saying, "Just come over crazy." I tell her and she nods.

"Yeah, alright Carlin. I'll see you two later." Ashley and I say our goodbyes as Madison makes her way to her car.

"What do you have to talk to her about?" Ashley turn to me and asks once Madison is out of earshot.

"I'll tell you in the car." I tell her and we both get into the car. Today was a crazy day. People talking, Aiden forgiving me, now I gotta have this conversation with my dad about God knows what _and_ tell my best friend that one of her best guy friends, who also happens to be my ex, wants to take her out. Crazy day indeed.

* * *

><p><em>Yay! An update lol. Soooo there's that, like I promised. I really hope you guys enjoyed it. Review and let me know what you think. And also, I thought that I should let you guys know that I miscalculated the amount of chapters that I have left. It's gonna be more than two. I'm still not sure how many, but I know it's more than two. Are you happy about that? :) Anywhos the next update should be Friday, I already started working on it.<em>


	22. Chapter 21 Crazy Day Part 2

_Sorry if there are mistakes guys, I didn't get a chance to re-read it before posting it. I promise to fix the mistakes later. :)_

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><p><strong>Chapter 21<strong>

"So what do you need to tell Madison?" Ashley asks as we pull out of the schools parking lot.

"Well, you know how I went and had lunch with Aiden today. Um... well... he kinda told me that he has a thing for Madison." I tell her and her head shoots to me.

"What? Are you serious?" I nod my head. "And you're not like, mad about it?" She asks in a high pitch voice.

I giggle at her before answering, "No, why would I? I mean, yeah, some people would say that it's wrong for my ex boyfriend to have a crush on my best friend—but I think it's okay. I want them both to be happy, and if Madison likes Aiden, then I think they should definitely go for it." I finish with a shrug and my girlfriend smiles at me. "What?" I ask.

"You have an amazing heart, Spencer. And I really admire that about you." She says sweetly, reaching over and grabbing my hand. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

* * *

><p>As we pulled into Ashley's driveway my phone rang. I looked at the caller ID and saw it was my dad calling.<p>

"You want me to stay out here with you, or you wanna be alone?" Ashley asks putting the car in park.

"I don't know. Alone I guess..." I tell her and she nods.

"If you need me, I'll be right inside, Spence."

"Thank you." I reply as she gets out the car. I take a deep breath and slide the accept button over on the screen to answer. "Hello?"

"Hey, Spencer." He says in a low voice.

"Hey, Arthur." I answer. Never once in my life have I called my dad by his first name, but honestly right now I don't even feel like he deserves to be called dad.

He sighs before asking, "How was school today?"

"Hell." I say simply.

"Things bad, huh?" Like really what is the point of this conversation? You called to make small talk with me when you haven't acted like a father most of my life?

"Is there something that you wanted?" I ask, becoming annoyed with this meaningless conversation.

"Well, um..." He starts, clearing his throat before continuing. "I wanted to talk to you about your mom, Spencer" He stops.

"What about her?" I say a little harsher than intended. But the very mention of her has changed my entire mood.

"Well, yesterday she was being irrational. I don't think she meant of what she said. I think she was just embarrassed and mad and things got a little out of hand. I don't think she-"

"Did she say this?" I cut him off.

"No, but-"

"Then I don't really want to hear it. She basically told me that she wish she never had me. That my love for Ashley is so wrong that she would disown me for it. What type of mother does and says those things?"

"Well, it's more complicated th-"

"That was a rhetorical question." I snap. "Look, I'm not coming back there, I don't want anything to do with this family anymore. Where were you yesterday when mom was basically tearing me down, piece by piece? Why didn't you speak up then? You were on her side."

"Spencer, you know your mother. When she gets something in her head there is no talking her down from it. I just wanted her to cool down before-"

"See that's the thing. You counsel kids all day about this very thing, you help them in ways that probably saves their lives. But when your own daughter needed saving, where were you?" I ask as the tears start to fall. "My whole life I've felt like I was the daughter you never wanted. Like you would have much rather had two sons, or just Glen. But the one time I really needed you, I forgot all that, and I hoped... no I believed that you—of all people, would have my back. But you didn't. And for that, I can't forgive you." I finish and he remains quiet for a moment before speaking.

"Spencer, I'm sorry that you feel like I haven't been there for you, and I have no excuse for how I acted yesterday. But I love you, you're my daughter." He says and I can tell that he's crying now too.

"Then you should've acted like it." I tell him before hanging up the phone. I hate to have it end like that. But honestly, right now, there's nothing he could say that would change how my mom treated me yesterday and how he didn't do anything to protect me. I wipe the falling tears from my face and gather myself before getting out of the car and going inside the house. Ashley is sitting at the bottom of the stairs playing with her hands, when I walk in she jumps up and rushes to my side.

"Are you okay?" She asks. She probably can tell I've been crying.

I shake my head. "There's nothing he can say to change what he did yesterday. He didn't take up for me once when my mom was saying all those things about us—about me. How can I forgive him?" I ask and she embraces me in a hug as I let the tears fall, once again.

"Shh.. It's okay, Spence. It's gonna be okay. You have me." She says rubbing circles in my back. "I'm not going anywhere. I promise." We make our way upstairs to her room and she lays me down on the bed, laying down beside me. Still trying to soothe my aching heart.

"I wanna forgive him." I blurt out suddenly. "But I can't." We're now laying on our sides on her bed, facing each other.

"I know, Spence. You feel like, as a father he wasn't there for you. He didn't protect you like a father should and right now it's hard for you to forget that. Just give it some time."

"He's never been there for me. Not ever. He's always let his work consume him. I don't even think he wanted me." I tell her and she shakes her head.

"I"m sure that's not true, Spencer. You're kinda hard not to love." She says with a small smile. This is the first time Ashley and I have ever really talked about my dad. "I know it might seem that way right now but look at it from his perspective for a second. He's torn between his wife and his daughter. Not to mention his religious beliefs. And no, I'm in no way, form or fashion on his side. I'm just saying..it's a lot for him to deal with probably." Ashley finishes and I can't help but smile at her.

"I love you." I say simply. She just has a way with words. She's knows exactly what to say and when to say it.

"I love you, too." She says and kisses my forehead. "Do you wanna take a nap before Madison gets here?" She asks me and I smirk.

"Really? Is that what the kids are calling it these days?" I say raising an eyebrow.

"Spencer Carlin, lately your mind has been living in the gutter." She tells me, laughing. "If I wanted to have sex I would have asked you if you wanted to _watch a movie_." She says wiggling her eyebrows. I giggle at her antics. "I really just mean take a nap. I know that you've been through a lot today and I figured that you were probably tired."

"Mmhmm. I'm sure that's what you meant." I say and we both giggle. "Thank you baby. You're so thoughtful." I give her a quick kiss.

"I know." She shrugs and smiles. We cuddle up and I quickly drift off to sleep in her arms.

* * *

><p>"Ahem." Someone clears their throat waking up me and Ashley. I open my eyes to see Madison standing over us with a smile playing at her lips.<p>

"Madison?" I question, sleepily. I'm not sure if my mind is playing tricks on me or not.

"After sex nap?" She asks, quirking an eyebrow.

I untangle myself from Ashley as her body shakes with laughter from Madison's crazy assumptions.

"No." I say sitting up. "Actually, we went straight to sleep. No sex, unfortunately." I tell her and she makes a disgusted face.

"Too much info, chica." She says taking a seat on the bed. "Juan let me in."

"I'm gonna go downstairs and ask Emilio to fix us something for dinner." Ashley says getting up from the bed. "Madison you gonna stay?"

"I can't, my mom and I are going to dinner." Ashley nods before exiting the room. "So, what did you wanna talk to me about, Spence?"

"Well," I start, removing the covers from my body and scooting closer to her. "You know how I talked to Aiden at lunch today?" I asks and she nods. "Well, we didn't just talk about me." I pause. I don't know why this is so hard for me to say. It's not like I'm telling her that _I'm_ in love with her.

"Spence, you're really starting to creep me out here. What happened, what did Aiden say to you?" She asks, worry written all over her face.

"He-told-me-that-he-wanted-to-take-you-out." I rush out all in one breath.

"Um, what the hell was that?" She asks, contorting her face in confusion. "I speak English and Spanish, Spence. Not whatever the hell that was."

"At lunch... um... well... Aiden might have sorta told me that um..."

"Spencer Carlin, if you don't spit that shit out right now!" Madison says in a warning tone.

"Ugh!" I groan out. "Fine. He told me that he wanted to ask you out." I say finally and her breath hitches. I guess she wasn't expecting that. Then again, neither was I when he told me.

"He said what?" She asks, obviously in disbelief.

"He told me that he wanted to ask you out but he wanted to make sure it was okay with me first." I pause. "Which it totally is, Mads. If you like him, you're more than wel-"

"Um, yeah... not happening, Spence." She tells me, standing up from the bed.

"What? Why not?"

"Hmm... let's see: he's your ex, he's my best guy friend, he's a jock, oh and did I forget to mention he's your ex!" She practically yells and I laugh at her.

"Madison, it's fine." I try and reason with her but she's just going off in Spanish. "Madison!" I say gripping her shoulders, spinning her around to face me. "First of all, calm down. Second of all it's fine, I _want_ you to go out with him."

"What are you, my pimp now? Are you whoring me out for monetary gain, Spencer?" Madison asks me seriously, quirking an eyebrow waiting for my response.

"No, Madison." I giggle at her. "I am not whoring you out for monetary gain." I pause and rack my brain. "Although, I could use some money so- Ow." I yell as Madison cuts my sentence short by punching me in the arm.

"I will not be anyone's whore." She tells me and I laugh.

"Except Mr. Fitz's." I say wiggling my eyebrows and smirking.

"Touché." She says and sits back down on the bed.

"So are you gonna go out with him or what, Mads?" She shrugs. "He really seems to like you, I think it would be good for the both of you." I tell her and she looks at me.

"You think it'll be good for me to go out with your ex?" She asks as I sit back down on the bed.

"My ex, who just so happens to be a guy you've known forever. It' fine, Madison. I promise. I have Ashley." I tell her and she nods.

"I don't know, Spence. It might be a little weird."

"Well, how about you actually go out with him first then decide if it's weird or not." I try and reason with her.

"Uuuuugh!" She groans, throwing her head back. "Fine." She huffs out.

"Yay!" I exclaim, clapping my hands together like a little kid.

"Anything to get you to shut up about it." She jokes bumping shoulders with me. She takes out her phone to check the time. "Shit! I need to go before Rosalinda kills me. You know how she is about being on time."

"Yeah." I laugh thinking about Mrs. Duarte. "I'll see you at school tomorrow." I say as we hug. She nods and smiles before leaving the room. I flop back down on Ashley's bed, smiling at myself for possibly hooking up two of my good friends. They both definitely deserve happiness.

"I just saw Madison hightailing it out of here. Everything went okay?" Ashley asks, walking into the room.

"Yeah, her mom is a Nazi when it comes to being on time for things so she had to hurry and get home to meet her for dinner." I tell her as she comes as lays down next to me on the bed.

"Oh, okay. So she was okay with what you told her?"

"Um, not so much at first, but she agreed to at least go out with Aiden once." I tell her as she snuggles closer to me.

"That's good." She kisses my cheek. "Emilio is gonna make us some Beef Wellingtons, but they won't be done for like an hour or so." She gets up and straddles me. "So I was thinking that maybe we could _watch a movie_." She leans down and whispers seductively in my ear.

"I thought you'd never ask." I whisper as I pull her into a kiss.

* * *

><p><em>Have I told you guys how amazing you are? I love every single one of you who have taken the time to read, favorite, alert and or comment. It makes me smile. Next update will be Monday. :) I hope you all enjoy this chapter.<em>


	23. Chapter 22 Karma's A Bitch

**Chapter 22**

"Can we skip school today, please?" Ashley mumbles into my neck as she snuggles closer to me. After last nights events..._*cough*_... you know... all the movie watching we did. Ashley and I are both pretty beat, but we can't skip school. No matter how much I would love that.

"No, Ashley. We can't." I tell her as I reach over and shut off the alarm clock. "We promised your dad we wouldn't do that remember." I say and she groans.

"It's not like he'll know. He's not gonna be home until like midnight and I'm sure he's already gone." She reasons with me.

"Ashley." I start, turning around to face her. "I'm not gonna give your dad any reason to believe that I'm a bad influence on you and kick me out. We're going to school and that's that." I tell her. She pouts before burying her head in the pillow and letting out a scream. "Don't be so dramatic." I say as I get up from the bed and make my way towards the bathroom. "Are you gonna join me or what?" I ask, raising a brow as she lifts her head from the pillow. A smirk plays at her lips before she leaps off the bed and beats me into the shower. I giggle as I join her.

After another session of um...moving watching, Ashley and I ate breakfast and headed to school. I know that it's killing Ashley to get up this early to come to school when she doesn't even have a first period, even though she tells me it's fine. I know she only did it before to see me, but now that we're living together she doesn't need to anymore. I need to look into getting a job so I can buy me a car.

"I'll see you at lunch." Ashley says as we pull into the school parking lot.

"Speaking of lunch, I've been meaning to ask you for forever now...How do you get to leave campus when you're only a junior?" I ask as she puts the car in park.

She looks at me and smiles, "I have my ways." I quirk an eyebrow. "Okay, okay. That new gym King High has this year, well it was compliments of one Raife Davies." I nod my head in understanding. Basically, he bought her a get outta jail free card... if that makes any sense. "Pizza okay?"

"Pizza's great." I tell her, before I give her another quick kiss and exit her car. When I make my way into first period, Madison is already in her normal seat and Carmen isn't, as usual.

"Hey chica." Madison greets me as I take my seat next to her.

"Hey. I'm starting to think she's avoiding me." I say flicking a thumb in the direction of Carmen's empty seat.

"She's knows what's good for her." Madison says coolly, before reaching in her bag and grabbing her notebook.

"Madison." I say and she looks at me.

I shake my head and giggle at her. "Nothing, never mind." I tell her grabbing my notebook from my bag. I know that Madison has been itching to beat the crap out of Carmen, well because she told me. Carmen has been non-existent lately and she better hope that Madison doesn't see her, outside of school especially. That would be a bad day.

All throughout class people kept turning around and staring at me, whispering. I would have figured by now Ashley and I's relationship would be old news...guess not. I was extremely glad when the bell rang signaling the end of class. But I know that this is what I have to look forward too in the rest of my classes.

"Pizza for lunch okay?" I tell Madison as we both gather our things.

"Okay, cool." She says before we both exit the classroom.

* * *

><p>"I am so sick of people staring at me." I say as I take a bite out of my pizza. "I mean like really? Do these people have nothing else going on in there lives that my life is so freaking important to them?" Ashley, Madison and I are sitting at a lunch table in the corner of the quad as everyone around us stares and whispers. It's so ridiculous.<p>

"I vote that we just kick everyone's ass. Or at least a couple underclassman. You know, to set an example." Madison suggests. Ashley and I share a look before we both burst out laughing.

"Violence isn't always the answer, Madison." Ashley says and Madison shrugs.

"You know Madison can't resist the urge to punch something, baby." I tell my girlfriend.

"Oh yeah, I forgot she has that impulsive thing." Ashley quips, getting a look from Madison.

"I think I'm about to lose my control on the two of you if you don't shut up." Madison says seriously, causing Ashley and I to both laugh.

"You know, I haven't seen Carmen since the other day." Ashley says taking a bite of her pizza.

"Yeah, I know. Madison and I were just talking about that in first block."

"Trust me, she doesn't want to see me." Madison says in her Mafia voice.

"Who are you now, the Mob?" I ask her jokingly and her head shoots to me. She glares at me and I'm officially scared. I throw my hands up defensively. "Okay, okay. Down Kujo. Don't kill me." I tell her grabbing another slice of pizza from the box.

"Baby did you just call her a vicious killing dog?" Ashley asks and I shrug.

"Did you not see the foam coming from her mouth?" I ask seriously, causing Ashley to laugh.

"Wow, speaking of vicious dogs, there's Carmen." Ashley points to a table on the far side of the quad. There she was, sitting with a bunch of stoners. Most of the girls that had her back that day she outed me. Figures.

"I'm gonna kill her." Madison says suddenly, standing. Oh crap.

"Shit." I mumble out as Madison makes her way across the quad to Carmen. "Help me." I tell Ashley as I jump up, trying to catch up with Madison.

"Aye yo, Sanchez." Madison says as she reaches Carmen's table. Her head shoots up and her eyes meet Madison's. "I need to talk to you."

"I'm busy." Carmen says as Ashley and I finally catch up to Madison. She looks between Ashley and I, letting her eyes linger on me a little longer than necessary before looking back down at the table.

"I could care less what the fuck you're doing, puta." Madison spits out and I already know this isn't going to end well. I try and grab Madison to pull back to our table but she snatches her arm away.

"Look Madison, I'm not in the mood so just leave me alone okay?" Carmen retorts, not even bothering to look up at Madison who is now making her way to the side of the table that Carmen is sitting on.

"Do you look like I care?" Madison bends down and says, inches from Carmen's face.

"Maddy, please." I try and reason with her. There is no need for this to happen here. After school - not on school property, I can deal with but not here, not now.

"Shut it, Spencer." She snaps at me.

"You better listen to your dyke friend, Madison. Before you get hurt." Carmen says finally looking up at Madison who looks like a damn lion, ready to attack it's prey.

"Spencer maybe we should get someone." Ashley whispers in my ear just as Carmen looks up at us.

"Oh look, the dykes are whispering." Carmen says and Madison jaw clenches. Uh oh.

"You know what Carmen." She says standing upright. "I've been a great friend to you, keeping your secret all these years, like a friend is supposed to. But since we're not friends anymore, what the fucks the point?"

"Madison." I try again. I know where she's going with this and I already told her that I didn't wanna stoop to Carmen's level. I wouldn't play her game.

"No, fuck it Spencer. I'm sick and tired of her acting like she's all high and mighty. She shitted on her friendship with you so why shouldn't I do the_ exact same thing_?" Madison says in a sing song voice. Carmen's eyes go wide in realization of what Madison is talking about.

"You keep your mouth shut, Duarte." Carmen says standing up. Wrong move.

Madison lets out a throaty laugh. "Do you think I'm scared of you? Ha! Everyone, listen up!" Madison yells, effectively getting the attention of everyone in the quad.

"Madison." I try once more but she doesn't listen.

"You all wanna know why Ms. Sanchez here decided to out her best friend Spencer?" Madison asks the crowd and gets a collective vote of approval. "Well, it seems that dear Carmen here has had a thing for-"

"Madison, no por favor" Carmen begs in a low voice. Madison smirks before continuing.

"Carmen, Ms. Judge and Jury has had a thing for Spencer since freshman year." Madison says and the crowd gasps. "She was only jealous that Spencer didn't choose her. That's what this whole thing has been about." Madison finishes as the quad breaks out into loud whispering.

"Spencer, is that true?" Ashley turns to me and asks.

"Yes." I breathe out. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you it's just that-" My sentence is cut short as I turn to my left and see Carmen hit Madison in the jaw. Yet another wrong move, Carmen. Madison braces herself before unleashing a wave of punches on Carmen's face, sending her to the ground where Madison continued to wail on her. Ashley and I both make our way over to them and try to pull Madison off of Carmen, who's face is now bloody and blue.

"Madison stop, you're gonna kill her." I hear Aiden say as he appears from the crowd of student's now gathered around the fighting duo.

"Aiden get Carmen." I tell him as he finally reaches us. Ashley and I finally yank Madison off Carmen and Aiden pulls Carmen up from the ground. The principal makes his way through the crowd before we can get a still fuming Madison away.

"Sanchez, Duarte, my office now." He says angrily. Ashley and I let Madison go and she makes her way past a bloody Carmen towards the principals office. "Ms. Sanchez, let's get you to the nurse first, shall we? And the rest you, get to class lunch is cut short today." He says to the crowd getting a collective 'aw man.'

"She's totally getting suspended." Ashley turns to me and says.

"She's lucky we broke that up in time or she'd be going to jail for murder." I tell my girlfriend seriously who giggles at my assumed over exaggeration. But I'm so serious. Everyone knows that you don't fuck with Madison Duarte. You become friends with her for one very good reason... so she won't beat the living crap outta you. It was in our friendship handbook. I guess Carmen never read it. Shrug.

Ashley and I go I separate ways to our classes, ten minutes early, might I add. Our teachers weren't even in the classrooms. It amazed me how still, I was the topic for the rest of the day. I texted Madison when I didn't see her in last period and asked her what the verdict was; she said she was suspended for a week and had a week worth of detention when she got back. I assured her that she didn't have to fight my battle for me. She assured _me_, that it was worth it. I'm thankful to have a best friend as great as her.

* * *

><p>"That sucks." Ashley says as we make our way to my locker to put my books up. Thankfully, I only had minimal homework, I'm not sure how much focusing I would be able to do with the day I've had.<p>

"Yeah, I know. I think Carmen got two weeks of each though, cause she started the fight." I tell Ashley as I spin the combination lock on my locker.

"Yeah, but still. I don't think Madison deserved any punishment. I mean she was only taking up for my girlfriend." Ashley says cutely.

"Aw. Aren't you adorable." I tell her and place a chaste kiss on her lips.

"Everything but." Ashley says and I giggle at her.

"Whatever you say." I tell her as I put the books I will need in my bag and take the ones I don't need out placing them in my locker.

"I was thinking maybe we could go to the beach today, you know... wind down a little."

"Sounds great!" I exclaim shutting my locker. "What the fuck?" I yell, jumping back towards Ashley.

"Hi." I petite, raven haired girl says to me.

"Who are you, are why are you standing creepily behind my locker?" I ask holding my chest. She really scared the crap outta me.

"I'm Jessica. You probably don't know me since I'm a freshman and all but I know you." She says smiling.

"Okay... that's not creepy." I say and glance at Ashley who just shrugs. "Um, this is Ashley, my girlfriend." I introduce her, thinking maybe that would get her to leave, but no, she just stood there. Staring at smiling at me. Not even acknowledging Ashley's presence.

"I just wanted to tell you that, I don't get what the big deal is, ya know? Who you're with, that's your business. No one else's. You shouldn't have to hide it." She says still staring at me.

"Um..." I say looking back between her and Ashley. Ashley has a small smile on her face trying to stifle a laugh. "Okay. Thank you, Jessica." I say slowly. I'm not really sure why she's telling me this.

"You're welcome." She says simply. Still damn smiling and staring at me. We stand there for a few minutes like this. Her just staring and smiling at me. I'm so stunned I don't even know what to do.

"Ooooookay." Ashley speaks up finally. I mentally thank her. "You can scurry along now Jessica, and stop eye-fucking my girlfriend." Ashley fakes a smile. Jessica finally stops smiling long enough to give Ashley an evil look then turns her attention back to me, smile plastered back on her face.

"I'll see you later, _Spencer_." She says in a tone—an almost knowing tone, before practically skipping away.

"Um, what the hell was that about?" I turn and ask my girlfriend, who just smiles at me. "Why are you smiling?" I ask as we make our way to the parking lot.

She shrugs before answering, "Seems like someone's got a little crush."

"No." I say simply as we reach her car. "That little girl is mega creepy. I think I need to watch my back now." I say jokingly, looking around and underneath Ashley's car for Jessica.

"Oh, you know you're flattered, Spencer. Stop pretending." She says as we get in the car.

"I would have been flattered if she would have just said, 'oh hi Spencer, I think you're cute.' Or some shit like that but I don't know what the hell that was back there." Ashley giggles putting the car in drive and pulling out of the parking lot.

"You're hot, what do you expect?" She asks and looks at me.

"I expect people to get that you're the love of my life, and nothing is gonna change that." I tell her truthfully.

"Aw, I love you too, baby." She says grabbing my hand and kissing it.

"I am so in need of an afternoon at the beach." I say letting my seat back a little.

"I know." She says simply, looking at me and smiling as we drove towards the beach.

I look out the window and smile thinking about my day and what happened with Carmen. Now everyone knows she's gay. I wonder how her _Catholic_ parent's will take that. I mean, they do go to my moms church, so I'm sure they probably already heard about what happened today. Karma's such a bitch, isn't it?

* * *

><p>Yay finally, the chapter I think everyone has been waiting for. I really hope I did it justice. Thank you guys so much for all your support. Hopefully, I can get the next update out for you guys by either Wednesday or Thursday. Comment and let me know what you thought of this chapter. :)<p> 


	24. Chapter 23 Rebels Without A Cause

**Chapter 23**

"I'm having a hard time concentrating with your hair blowing in the wind like that." Ashley tells me as we lay on a blanket on the beach. I'm on my stomach reading my Literature textbook and she's on her back facing the ocean.

"I'm sorry Ashley," I say averting my eyes to hers. "Would you like for me to tell the wind to stop blowing? Would that make you happy?" I quip.

"Immensely." She says cocking her head to the side and smiling.

"Today was beyond crazy." I say changing the subject, turning my attention back to my book.

"Yeah, I know. I didn't expect Madison to go all Layla Ali on Carmen though." Ashley says, propping herself up on her elbows. "It was fun to watch though."

"Madison's mom is gonna kill her though. Madison has never been suspended a day in her life."

"Really?" Ashley asks surprised.

"Hard to believe right? People know not to mess with her."

"I guess Carmen didn't get that memo." Ashley says and we both laugh. "I'm gonna go take a dip in the ocean, you coming?" She asks as she starts to undress.

"What, do you wear a bathing suit under your clothes everyday?" I asks as she kicks off her shorts to reveal a pink and black bikini.

She shrugs before saying, "Maybe. So you coming or what?"

"I think I'll pass." I tell her turning my head back to my book.

"Suit yourself." She says before taking off towards the water. I watch as she runs and emerges herself in the water, letting the small waves bounce her around. "The water is amazing!" She yells from the water. I shake my head and giggle at her. I turn my attention back to my book, well, I try at least. It's kinda hard to read a story when your extremely hot girlfriend is behind you frolicking in the ocean.

Despite that, I really needed to finish reading this story for Literature. We have a test on it tomorrow. So against my better judgment, I focus all my attention on my book and it was working—for the most part. Until...

"What the hell, Ash?" I ask looking up at the smiling brunette.

"What?" She asks with an innocent look on her face.

"You just rung your hair out all over my _school_ book."

"And?" She asks, quirking an eyebrow.

"And...um." Wait what's my and? "Um... it's school property?..." I say as she giggles.

"So what are you gonna do about it then, Spencer?" She asks bending down in front of me. Her voice raspy and playful.

I smirk before replying, "Run, Davies." I tell her as I start to lift myself up from the towel.

"Huh?" She asks with a confused expression.

"Run!" I say again and she gets it, cause she takes off running—me on her heels. "I'm gonna kill you, Ashley." I joke as I chase her down the beach.

"You'll never catch me, Carlin." She yells back over her shoulder, as she does a bunch of evasive moves trying to lose me. I'm not falling for it.

"Gotcha." I say leaping onto her back. We both fall to the ground. I spin her around, both of us giggling like crazy. "Seems like you're not as fast as you thought you were, Ms. Davies." I said matter of factly.

"Or did I just let you catch me?" She asks raising a brow.

"Don't pretend like you did cause I know yo-" She cut me off with her lips. Thank goodness there aren't many people at the beach. Just a older couple and some teens a good one hundred feet from us.

"I love you." She says as we pull back from the kiss.

"I love you, too." I smile and lean down to kiss her again. She puts a finger up stopping me.

"Why didn't you tell me about Carmen?" She asks and I take that as my cue to get off of her.

"Honestly..." I start as we both sit up and look out towards the ocean. "I don't know."

"Were you ever gonna tell me?" She asks, looking at me now.

I turn to look at her, "I don't know." I answer honestly. She nods her head before silently getting up and making her way back to our things. "Ashley." I call after her.

"It's fine, Spencer." She tells me as we reach our stuff.

"No, it's not." I spin her around to face me. "I'm sorry that I didn't tell you. I don't know why I didn't. Maybe deep down I was being selfish. Carmen and I have been friends since freshman year and I didn't want to lose her. The day she came over and told me about her feelings, I forgave her for the stuff she had done and I wanted to move forward with our friendship. I honestly didn't think it would come up again, and I didn't wanna give you another reason to hate her. I didn't know she would do the picture thing. So I was protecting her for nothing." I say looking down at the sand.

Ashley takes a finger and lifts my chin to make my eyes meet hers, "You try and see the good in people, Spencer. And I love that about you. Even after what Carmen did I know that deep down inside you still would forgive her. Just like you forgave me for lying to you. Don't apologize for being a good person. I'd certainly never want you to change." She tells me and smiles. "You're beautiful, inside and out—don't change that for anyone."

"I love you." I whisper in her ear as I pull her into a hug.

"I know. I love you too, Spencer." She whispers back. As we pull back I look down at my sopping wet Literature book and remember how this all got started.

"You're trading Lit books with me." I tell Ashley as we sit back down on the towel.

"You have sand in your hair." She giggles.

"So do you, Sandy." I laugh along with her as we brush the sand out of each others hair. "You know what I still can't believe?" I asks as we pack up our things to head back to Ashley's.

"That you found such a hot and incredible girlfriend?" Ashley asks cutely.

"Well that, Ms. Cocky, and the fact that even after what happened with Madison and Carmen today our relationship was still being talked about around school. Like, I just don't get it. What is it gonna take for people to just get over it?" I ask frustrated. I really am sick of being the big news around King High. So what I'm in love with a girl, who cares? "I really wish that we could just get away for a while. Not have to worry about anybody else, it'd be just us." I say finally, shoving my book back in my bag as Ashley picks up and folds the towel we were resting on.

"We could you know." She says suddenly, as we're walking back to the car.

"Could what?" I ask confused. I know she's not talking about leaving cause we do have this thing called school and Christmas break isn't for another month.

"Get away, Spence." She tells me as we reach her car.

"Yeah, right. We have that thing called school, remember?" I ask, throwing my bag in the backseat as she puts the beach towel in the trunk.

"We could miss school for like a week. You're a Senior so you don't do that much work and my dad's money practically bought me a 'do-whatever-I-want' card." She says as we both get into the car.

"I don't know, Ash. We have a test in Lit tomorrow and I've never missed a whole week of school before. Not even when I'm sick." I say as she starts the car and backs out of the parking space.

"We'd only be gone for a week, Spence. And you could totally make up all the work you missed. It'll be no big deal. Plus, you really need to get away baby." She's right. Getting away for a whole week, away from all the drama would be super nice.

"Okay." I say simply.

"What?" She stops the car and looks at me.

"I said okay." I tell her again.

"Okay, good." She smiles and starts back driving. "I guess we should go home and pack then."

* * *

><p>"Ashley, why do you already have two suitcases? We're only gonna be gone for a week, right?" I quirk a brow. I hope she isn't trying to trick me.<p>

"Yeah, no. I just um... I like to over pack, it's better than under packing. She says giving me a toothy grin.

"What's your dad gonna say about all this?" I ask, suddenly realizing that we're making all these plans and we haven't even asked her dad yet. I only have four hundred dollars to my name and I know that would pay for any one week trip I can think of. So that means the money would be coming from him.

"Shit." She mumbles, looking around at all the clothes scattered everywhere. "I forgot about him."

"You forgot about your dad?"

"Well, I've never really had anyone actually care about what I do before. So I've never asked to do anything." Ashley says sitting down on the bed.

"Well you do now. You have at least three people." I say joining her.

"And who are these three people?" She asks me with a knowing smirk.

"Your dad, Madison, and me." I say without a second thought.

"Good to know." She leans in and kisses my lips softly. "When my dad comes home tonight, we'll ask him okay?"

"Okay." I tell her leaning back in for another kiss.

* * *

><p>"You wanna do what exactly?" Raife asks Ashley for like the third time. I don't think it's sinking in.<p>

"Well, things have been really bad at school dad. Spencer is having a really hard time with everything. I'm used to being talked about so this is nothing for me, but I don't want Spencer to have to go through any of this anymore." Ashley tells her dad. We're in his studio. He's sitting on the chair in front of the sound board and Ashley and I are sitting on a couch across from him.

"Ashley, honey-" He starts.

"Dad before you say no. It would only be for like a week and we could totally make up the work we missed with no problem. I just really wanna take Spencer somewhere." She says grabbing my hand. "I love her, dad. And I wanna make her feel better, this trip would make her feel better." She finishes and looks at me with a smile. I bring her hand up to my lips and kiss it.

"Ashley, I know that things are hard right now for you and Spencer. But I don't think this trip is a good idea. You're both still in high school and did you forget you're only 16? I'm sorry, I just can't allow my 16 year old daughter and girlfriend to take a trip to God knows where, alone. I just can't allow it, Ashley."

"But dad-"

"No buts, Ashley. That's my decision and it's final. Maybe this weekend we can drive up the coast or something. Take a road trip. But I won't allow you two to go alone." Raife finishes and turns back around to his sound board. I guess that means the conversation is over.

Ashley grabs my hand and leads me back up to her room. When we get inside she grabs her suitcases and empty them out, then goes to her closet and grabs two duffel bags.

"What are you doing?" I ask as she begins to pack her clothes in one of the bags.

"Take this." She says, throwing me one of the bags.

"Ashley?" I question. I'm not really sure what's going on here. Raife just made it perfectly clear that we're not allowed to take this trip I so desperately need. She stops packing, maneuvering her way around all the clothes scattered on the floor to me.

She cups my face and kisses me lightly. "I promise that I will always take care of you, okay?" I nod my head. "You trust me?" She asks and I nod again. "We're taking this trip, Spencer. You need this. You need this more than anything right now and I'm gonna give this to you." She says and I shake my head.

"But your dad-"

"I know." She cuts me off. "I have fourteen thousand dollars in a bank account my dad set up for me for emergencies. We can clean it out and run away, Spence. You're 18, I'll be 17 in less than a month. We could live on that for awhile." She says bringing her hands down from my face and taking mine in hers.

"This is crazy. We should just wait until Christmas break." I tell her. Cause this_ is_ crazy.

"I know it sounds crazy, and maybe it is. But I wanna be with you and make you happy, Spence. I want you to be happy, and right now—this trip will make you happy." She finishes and I'm speechless. "Spence?" She questions, searching my eyes for an answer. An answer I don't have.

"I...what... Ashley, this is crazy." I say again. Not really knowing what else to say.

"We'll be like Bonnie and Clyde, rebels without a cause." She says and I can't help but smile.

"You know rebel without a cause is James Dean, right?" I quirk a brow.

"Yeah, but you get what I'm saying though."

"Yeah. But you're right, we are rebelling without a cause." I tell her and she shrugs.

"I want you to be happy. That's cause enough."

"You're crazy, you know that?" I ask my girlfriend, who smirks.

"Crazy for you." I smile and shake my head at her.

"Okay, Ashley. I'll do it. As crazy as this seems. I'll do it for you." I tell her and she literally jumps for joy.

"This is gonna be so much fun." She claps her hands together. "Let's leave tomorrow before school okay? My dad is gonna leave early that way we'll have a head start before he'll even know we're gone." She says and I nod.

What are we getting ourselves into?

* * *

><p><em>I hope you guys enjoyed that chapter. I'm not sure when the next one will be...Maybe Monday... I'm hoping for Monday. I appreciate all the reviews, author alerts, story alerts, and people who have Favorited this story. It means a lot. <em>


	25. Chapter 24 We're Gonna Ditch This Town

_Sorry it took me a little longer to update than intended. Hope you enjoy._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 24<strong>

"Ashley baby, wake up." I shake her. I glance over at the alarm clock and it reads 5:45am.

"Mmm...morning baby." Ashley says snuggling closer to me. "Is it time to wake up already?"

"Baby, are you sure we should do this?" I ask, turning my entire body to face her.

"Spence." She starts, opening her eyes to look at me. "Everything's gonna be fine okay? Don't worry."

"I just... I don't know if this is such a good idea. Maybe we should just wait until Christmas break. I mean, it's not that far away Ashley." I tell her sitting up.

"Baby." She starts, sitting up too. "Things suck at school right now. I want you to be happy." She sighs before continuing, "I know this trip will make you happy. I promise everything will be okay." She tells me, kissing my bare shoulder.

"You promise?" I ask, turning my head to look at her.

She gives me a small smile before answering, "I swear to you, I won't ever let anything happen to you." I smile, before kissing her lips softly.

"I love you." She says pulling back, breaking the kiss.

"I love you, too." I reply, reconnecting our lips. The kiss quickly turning heated. Ashley sits up, breaking the kiss and makes her way on top of me so that she is now straddling me. She quickly reconnects our lips, rubbing her tongue across my bottom lip—requesting entrance. Entrance that I gladly grant. I let my hands make their way into her hair, massaging her scalp lightly as our tongues continue to battle for dominance. She lets a small moan escape her lips as my hands make their way down her back to the hem of her wife beater. I tug on it and she gets the hint, sitting up to remove it—exposing her bare breast.

She brings her body back down on top of me, this time letting her lips attack my neck. She takes my neck between her teeth, causing a throaty moan to escape my lips. I scratch my way down her bare back as she continues the assault on my neck.

"Ashley." I barely whisper.

"Hmm?" She mumbles into my neck as she continues kissing and sucking on my neck.

"I wanna... I..." I try and get out between moans, but the attack she's putting on my neck feels way too good. I lightly push her off of me.

"What is it, Spence?" She asks, confused.

"I want to..." I pause, she searches my eyes for an answer.

"Spencer?"

"I wanna do it, Ashley." I tell her and her eyes go wide. She knows exactly what I'm talking about.

She sighs and shakes her head, "Spence, you don't-"

"I know." I tell her with a smile. "I want to though." I adjust us so that I'm now on top of her.

"Spencer I-" I cut her off with my lips. Needing to feel them on mine. Her hands travel to my hips and she squeezes as we continue to kiss. I lift up briefly to remove my shirt and moan at the contact of both our shirtless bodies touching. I move my assault from her bruised lips down her neck to her breast. Taking each one in my mouth hungrily. I've never wanted anyone more in my entire life.

I kiss my way down Ashley's body, licking around her belly button, down to her boy shorts covered center. I glance up at her and she's looking down at me. Her eyes telling me that I don't have to do this. That if I'm not ready, she's not rushing me. I shake all the scared thoughts out of my head.

I kiss her center, eliciting a moan from her. I can't wait to make her feel how she makes me feel every time we make love.

"Take these off." I command her, tugging on boy shorts. She moans, before lifting her hips so I can slide the shorts down her legs and off. I re-position myself back between her legs, allowing myself to take in the scent of her. I place chaste kisses on her inner thigh and she arches her back at the contact.

"I want you to tell me what to do." I lift my head up and tell her. She lifts her head off the pillow and looks at me.

"Spence, you don't need me to tell you anything." She says and her breath hitches when I run my finger over her opening, taking that same finger, putting it in my mouth and sucking on it. I think I just found my new favorite taste. I crawl my way up the length of her body, kissing her lips when I reach them. I turn my head and whisper into her ear.

"I _want_ you to tell me what you want." I say, my voice husky and a little more forceful. Ashley moans into my neck then nods her head. I make may way back down her body, positioning myself between her legs. I kiss my way from her inner thigh to her center which was now dripping wet. I couldn't help myself as I took my tongue and licked my way up her folds, sucking up all her juices. Ashley moaned loudly at the contact and lifted her hips to meet my tongue. "Tell me what you want, baby." I say as her breathing picks up.

"I want.. I want..." She's having a hard time getting her words out as I let my index finger trace circles around her clit.

"Tell me." I whisper harshly, letting my finger that was playing with her clit, enter her pussy.

"Fuck." She moans out as I slowly go in and out of her.

"Ashley, I need you to tell me what you want." I tell her again making my way back up her body but never taking my finger out of her. "Tell me what you want!" I say a little louder into her ear, before taking it between my teeth. She wraps her arms around my neck as she rocks her body into my finger.

"I want... I need... more." She moans out.

"More?" I question.

"Fingers baby... more fingers." She says in rushed breaths. I suck and bite on her neck as I let a second finger enter her.

"Fuuuuuck." She screams out when I enter her with the second finger. "Oh my fucking God, Spencer!" She yells when I put the third one in.

"You're so wet." I whisper into her ear as I thrust three fingers in and out of her easily.

"Go faster, Spencer." She moans and lifts her hips into my fingers. I pick up the pace of my movement causing Ashley to murmur an array of curse words followed by deep throaty moans.

"Ashley." I moan out as I feel her walls tighten around my fingers. I know she's about to cum.

"I'm gonna cum, baby." She whispers out as her body rocks harder into my fingers. "Fuck, Spence. I'm coming, I'm coming baby." She tells me as her body begins to shake and a hot liquid escapes her pussy and rolls down my hand. "Shit." She says as I take my fingers out of her. "Wow." She breathes out. I bring my hand up to my mouth making sure to lick each digit clean of Ashley's juices. "Fuck that's hot, Spence." She tells me as I finish cleaning my fingers of her cum. I smirk then make my way back down her body.

"Open your legs." I tell her and she complies. I carefully lick up all the juices Ashley's pussy just released making sure not to leave any of her sweet goodness behind. I think I can become addicted to her taste. Ashley moans as I continue to lick up her juices and it does nothing but turn me on more. I grab her legs, pulling her closer to my mouth and waste no time burying my tongue deep inside her.

"Shit, Spencer!" She yells/moans out when my tongue enters her. I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do so I just mimic Ashley's actions from when she's done me. I take my tongue out of her and let it circle her clit. She jumps at the contact and curses. I smile into her center and continue circling her clit. "Spence, you're killing me." She breathes out. Her clit is probably still sensitive because she just came, but I like teasing her. I continue attacking her clit, taking it between my teeth—biting lightly on it.

I allow my tongue to enter her again and she moans out in pleasure. She's close again. I let my tongue thrust in and out of her slowly. I pick up pace as her body begins to shake.

"Mmm." I moan into her hole as she cums all over my tongue.

"Oh fuck yes." She breathes out. I keep my tongue in her until her orgasm subsides then lick up all her juices, happily. Yeah, I'm pretty sure that after just one taste, I need rehab for an addiction to Ashley's sweet taste. "Fuck." She says as I crawl up and lay down beside her.

"You taste amazing." I tell her truthfully.

"Not better than you." She says getting up and straddling me.

"Ashley, no." I say stopping her assault on my neck.

"What's wrong." She lifts up confused.

"Nothing's wrong. I just... I want right now to be about you. About my first time giving _you_ pleasure." I tell her and she sighs rolling off me.

"But...but." I give her a look. She pokes out her bottom lip and says, "Fine. But can I at least-"

"No." I say cutting her off.

"But you don't even know what I was gonna say." She whines.

"You wanna just taste me once, right?" I say quirking a brow.

"How did you-"

"You always say that." I tell her seriously, and we both giggle.

"Just let me..." She trails off as she let's her hand enter my shorts and my soaked center.

"Fuuuuuck." I moan out at the contact. She rubs her fingers up and down my folds then pulls them out and put them in her mouth—sucking off my juices.

"That's all I wanted." She says with a smirk.

"You are so dirty." I slap her on the arm.

"You love me." She laughs. "Now, let's go get showered and head out of here. I'm sure my dad's gone by now." She tells me getting up from the bed, walking towards the bathroom.

"Ashley." I call after her from the bed.

She stops in the doorway and turns to me. "Yeah baby?"

"Was I... um... was I okay?" I ask timidly. I know that I made her cum but I mean... I don't know, maybe I'm just being crazy.

She quickly makes her way back to me, crawling up the length of the bed. "You were fucking amazing." She says grabbing my face kissing me.

"Okay." I say as she pulls back.

"Now, let's go shower so we can go." She says pulling me up from the bed.

"I'll be right there." I tell her. She smiles then makes her way into the bathroom. I grab my phone off the dresser and text Madison.

_'Hey Maddy. I need to talk to you about something. Meet me at the park down the street from the school in an hour.' _I text her, then go take a shower with my girlfriend.

* * *

><p>"What if they don't let you get the money out, Ash?" I ask my girlfriend as we pull into the parking lot of the bank. Ashley's a minor and even though her name is on the account, because of her age, she technically needs parental consent to clean her account out.<p>

"Don't worry about it, Spence. I got it." She tells me with a smile as we both get out of the car and make our way into California Bank and Trust.

"What are you doing?" I asks Ashley as we stand back from the counters and she surveys the clerks.

"Deciding?" She tells me, still looking around.

"Deciding on what?" I whisper close to her ear. "You look like you're about the rob the place, Ashley." I say seriously. I mean, who comes in a bank and stands close to the door watching people?

"Bonnie and Clyde, right?" Ashley turns and says to me with a smile.

I slap on her on the arm, "So not funny." I tell her and she laughs a little before turning back to her people watching.

"I'm choosing a clerk, Spence." She says casually, like she's done this a million times before.

"Why?" I ask, now trying to figure out exactly how she could possibly know who's counter to go to, just by looking at them.

"I'm a minor, like you said. So technically, it is illegal for them to allow me to clear my account without my dad's permission, so I need to choose the right clerk—someone that I can convince to do it for me." She says nodding her head to the end of the counter. "You see that lady." She says and I turn my head in the direction of a 50 something year old lady.

"Mhm."

"Well, I wouldn't go to her counter cause clearly she would never break the rules." Ashley says turning to look at me.

"How do you know?" I ask her and she smiles.

"She's probably been here for over thirty years." She says turning back in the direction of the woman. "There's no way she'd risk her retirement for a couple of teenagers who wanna clean an account to run away." She tells me then averts her eyes to the other end of the counter. "Look." She nods her head to a woman that looks like she's in her mid to late twenties.

"She looks approachable." I acknowledge, getting a laugh from Ashley.

"It's not just about that, Spence. She's new here. Probably only been here a few months, so that mean she's still on probation, she's not gonna do it."

"How do you-" I start, but Ashley cuts me off.

"She's straight, so I can't flirt with her. He's gay so I can't flirt with him. That's the branch manager, and she's probably his wife." Ashley tells me going down the line, giving a head nod to each person as she tells me a reason why they aren't good for our plan.

"Ashley-"

"Now he's someone I can work with." She cuts me off again and drags me in the direction of a blond boy that looks only about 19 or 20 years old.

"How do you know he's gonna do it?" I question as we step into his line behind one other person.

"He's a guy and he looks straight. You're hot, I'm hot. What else do you need?" She says, causing me to giggle.

"So we're putting the fate of our little trip here on the fact that we're both hot?" I ask, quirking a brow.

She nods and shrugs, "Pretty much." She says just as the guy calls next.

"Hi, how may I help you?" The boy says with a bigger than necessary cheesy grin on his face. I'm guessing Ashley is probably right about him.

"Hi... Jason." Ashley says huskily, leaning forward to read his name tag. "My name is Ashley," She pauses and looks at me, "And this is Spencer. We're going on a little trip and we're gonna need a little cash to get where we're going, you think you can help us out with that Jason?" She finishes, flashing that million dollar smile of hers. The one that can get anyone to melt and follow her every command. I just hope this guy falls for it.

"No problem, Ashley. Could I just have your account number and last name, please?" Jason asks and Ashley tells him. He punches in the numbers and pulls up the account. "Oh wow." He says staring at the screen.

"Is there a problem, Jason?" Ashley asks, flirtatiously.

"Um, no problem." He clears his throat before asking, "How much did you want to withdraw today?"

Ashley looks at me then back at Jason and says, "All of it."

"All of it?" He asks, his voice breaking because of his pitch.

"Yes, please." Ashley says cutely.

"I'm supposed to get the bank manager for transactions this big, um...be right back." Jason says and starts to walk away.

"No." Ashley says suddenly. I think a little louder than she intended, causing a few people to turn and look at us. "Listen Jason. I already know what the manager is gonna say. He's gonna say that I'm too young and I need parental consent to withdraw this much money, so if you wouldn't mind just giving me the maximum amount that is allowed without getting the bank manager, that would be so greatly appreciated."

"Well that's only four thousand." He says typing something on his computer.

"Is there no way we could do at least ten, Jason. Is there anyway you could do that for us? It's just, my dad, he's at work and I wouldn't wanna bother him in the studio with something as mundane as this. You know?" Ashley says and I have to turn my back to the counter to keep Jason from seeing me try and stifle my laughter.

"The studio?"

"Mhm. My dad is Raife Davies—CEO of Epic Records." Ashley says matter of fact, and I turn around in time to see the look of shock on Jason's face.

"Really?" He asks in his high pitch voice again.

"Mhm. And I would hate to bother him for something like this, he's probably so busy." Ashley says and he nods. "So is there any way you could help us?" She asks again and the boy looks around before turning back to us and nodding enthusiastically.

"Thank you so much, Jason. You won't get in trouble for this will you?" Ashley asks and I give her a confused look. We got him right where we want him and she wants to know if he'll get in trouble.

"Nah. My dad's the bank manager." He say punching some numbers into the computer. "Who cares if I do? I hate it here anyway. I can give you five thousand in cash and nine thousand in traveler's checks if you want to clear the account completely." Jason says looking up from his computer.

"That would be amazing." Ashley says smiling. Jason returns the smile before going to process the transaction.

"Have you done this before?" I ask Ashley as we walk out of the bank to her car.

"Nope, I'm just really good at reading people." She says as we get in the car.

"Is that a fact?" I ask with a smile.

"Yep." She says putting the money and traveler's checks in her duffel bag, before starting the car and backing out of the parking spot. "I read you like a book, Carlin."

"And what exactly does that mean?" I ask as we pull out of the bank parking lot.

She turns and looks at me, "I so knew you were gay. I just had to wait for_ you_ to figure it out."

I fake insult, "I was so not gay before you decided to prey on me like a predator." I joke with my girlfriend.

"Oh you were so begging for it." She quips.

"I bet that's what you say to all the girls." I tell her with a smile.

"Meh.." She says turning her eyes back to the road. "Maybe." She adds with a smile. I shake my head at my girlfriend as we continue towards the park to meet up with Madison.

* * *

><p>"So what's this all about, Spence?" Madison asks as Ashley and I both get out of the car.<p>

"You got somewhere to be, Mads?" I ask playfully as we make our way to Madison's car.

"Actually, yeah. At home in my bed asleep, you know..." She pauses as she leans back against her car. "Since I'm suspended and all." A smile creeps onto her lips.

"Mads, I'm gonna tell you something but you gotta promise not to freak out okay?"

"Spence, you know I hate when you start sentences like that." Madison says pushing off her car.

I laugh at my best friend before saying, "Ashley and I are gonna run away." I tell her looking back between her and Ashley. She has a look of disbelief on her face.

"What?" She asks, looking me dead in my eyes.

"Ashley and I-"

"No, I heard what you said." She cuts me off, moving closer to me. "I just don't believe you."

"Maddy." I start but she cuts me off again.

"What I mean to say is what the hell are you thinking, Spencer?" She asks, voice laced with concern and anger.

"I need to get away from here, Madison. All the stuff going on at school and with my parents. I just... I need some time." I tell her, but she's not buying it.

"My dad wouldn't let us take a little trip, so this is the only way we could get away. Spence needs this, Madison." Ashley chimes in.

"No, she doesn't." She says to Ashley then turns her attention back to me. "Spence, you know that you can go to jail for this? Ashley's a minor, you could be charged with kidnapping." Madison tries to reason with me. I didn't even think of that.

"She's right." I turn to Ashley and say. "We were so caught up in trying to be together somewhere alone, we didn't even think of that." I tell my girlfriend, who immediately rushes to me.

"I don't care, Spencer." She says sternly, grabbing my face in her hands. "You need this. No one's gonna catch us. My dad wouldn't call the police on us. We'll call him when we get to where we're going. He won't even know we're gone until at the earliest, midnight tonight. Don't back out now, Spence. I'm doing this for you."

I glance back at Madison who sighs before saying, "Fine. I'll cover for you guys. Call your dad and tell him that you're staying at my house for a few days. That'll at least buy you guys a massive head start." She shakes her head. "You two are crazy. Giving up that Mansion and a private chef and butler cause you wanna "be alone" together." She finishes, using air quotes and all.

"Thank you, Maddy." I say, engulfing her in a hug. She really is a great best friend. I don't know where I would be without her.

"Yeah, thanks a lot Madison." Ashley says mimicking my actions.

"You two should probably get outta here now." Madison says as they pull back from their hug.

"Yeah, she's right." Ashley says looking at me. "We should get on the road if we wanna at least, make it out of California by night fall."

"Okay. I'll be right there." I tell Ashley as she head towards the car. She nods and waves goodbye to Madison.

"Are you sure you wanna do this?" Madison asks me again as we both lean against her car.

"She's just trying to make me happy." I tell my best friend and she gets what I'm trying to say.

She sighs, "What am I supposed to do without you?" She asks me seriously. Madison and I have been practically inseparable since we became friends.

"You'll do just fine. You got Aiden, remember?" I joke, bumping shoulders with her.

"Speaking of Aiden, we went on that date last night." She tells me, and I can tell she's replaying last nights events back in her head as a smile creeps onto her lips.

"It went good, I presume?" I question as she smiles harder.

"We kissed." She says simply, bringing a finger up to her lips.

"Wow." Is all I got.

"And I didn't feel like I was kissing my brother." She adds.

"That's a good thing." I joke and we both laugh.

"I know, I'm just saying. I've always kinda thought of Aiden as like a big brother you know. That's why I was so skeptical about the date. But it was great. At first we were both nervous, Aiden more than me. But as the night went on we kinda just acted how we always acted and it became fun and not awkward. And when he dropped me off, he kissed me. And it didn't suck." She says with a shrug as Ashley blows the horn.

"I'm glad to hear that. Promise me something."

"What?" She asks as we make our way to Ashley's car.

"I won't come back here to find you in jail and Carmen dead." I say as we reach the car.

"Ugh!" She groans. "Fine." She sighs as a smile spreads across her face.

"Spence, we better get going." Ashley rolls down the window and says.

"I'll miss you." I hug my best friend again.

"Duh. Who wouldn't?" She jokes. "Ashley." She breaks free and bends down in front of the open window. "Take care of my best friend, will ya?"

"I promise." Ashley says and Madison nods.

"Okay, get going you too. Call me as soon as you can, Spence." Madison says as I get in the car.

"Okay." I tell her shutting the door. "Love you, Mads."

"Love you too, chica." Madison says as we back out of the parking space. "Be safe." She yells at our departing car.

"So where exactly are we going?" I ask Ashley as she turns onto the highway.

"I don't know, I was thinking maybe somewhere east. Where did you wanna go?" She asks, glancing at me before training her eyes back to the road.

"I don't care really. As long as I'm with you." I say and she grabs my hand.

"I know the feeling." She glances at me. "So let's just go east and see where it takes us."

"Okay." I smile and squeeze her hand tighter as we continue down the highway. "We should probably get rid of our phones, you know..." I say suddenly and take my phone out of my pocket. "So they can't track us." She smiles, releasing my hand—taking her phone out her pocket.

"Throw them out the window." She says handing it to me. "We'll get those little disposable ones at a gas station."

"Um...okay." I say as I take the batteries out of both our phones, then toss the phones out of the window. "Ash." I say after about ten minutes of silence.

"Yeah?" She questions, looking over at me.

"We're doing the right thing, right?" She pulls over to the shoulder and shuts off the car—facing me.

"Spence," She grabs my hand in hers. "We're doing the absolute right thing. Okay?"

"I love you. I know I say it a lot, but I do. I really love you, Ashley."

"I know, Spencer." She says kissing my hand. "And I really really really love you." She tells me with a smile. "Now lets get outta here." She says leaning forward, kissing my lips before turning back in her seat and re-starting the car.

As we pulled back onto the highway I couldn't help but think of all the things that could go wrong on this little excursion of ours. I really hope we're doing the right thing.

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><p><em>Well I really hope you all enjoyed that. I'm sad to say the next chapter will be the last for this story. Review and let me know what you all thought of this chapter.<em>


	26. Chapter 25 The End or not

**Omg it's the end you guys.. *tear* I'm so glad everyone stuck with me throughout this story. I appreciate all the love and support. It really meant a lot. I hope you enjoy the chapter. :)**

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><p><strong>Chapter 25<strong>

"So, have you decided where you wanna go yet?" Ashley asks me as we continue down the highway. We've been on the road for a good four hours now.

"I don't know. I haven't really thought of anywhere. I say you choose." I tell her, grabbing her iPod changing the song.

"Do I have to make all the decisions?" She asks before turning to me and smiling.

"Well, this was all _your_ idea." I say as a Sara Bareilles song comes through the speakers. She shakes her head and rolls her eyes as I begin to sing along to Love Song. "Um." I say looking at Ashley then out the window.

"What is it?" She asks glancing over at me.

"I kinda gotta pee." I tell her and she sighs.

"Spence. You know we weren't gonna stop until we were at least eight hours into the trip." She tells me in a sing song voice.

"I know, I know." I whine. "I can't help it baby. And I'm pretty hungry too." I say in a small voice.

She shakes her head and smiles before saying, "You're such a little kid, Spence. I swear."

"You love me." I smile and kiss my girlfriend on the cheek as she pulls off the highway. We pull into a gas station where I quickly hop out run inside to use the bathroom.

"Oh my God, I feel so much better." I exclaim as I exit the gas station. Ashley doesn't acknowledge me, she just keeps her eyes focused on something. I walk over to her and hold up the two cheap cell phones I just bought out of the store. "Looky what I got us, baby." I say all cute like, waving the phones in her face but she still doesn't acknowledge me. She keeps her eyes focused on whatever she was looking at when I came out of the store. I follow her line of sight, straight to a cop car sitting in the parking lot about fifty feet away from where she's parked. "Fuuuuck." I mumble out as I make my way to my girlfriend. "Who called the cops?" She shrugs but doesn't say anything. "Oh my God, we're gonna go to jail. Your dad called the cops and now they're looking for us. I'm too young to go to jail Ashley." I go off on a rant, pacing back in forth in front of my girlfriend. "Do you know what they do to girls like me in jail, Ash? Oh my God, oh my God."

"Pull it together, Carlin." Ashley says grabbing my shoulders, yanking me around to face her. She nods her head in the direction of the cop and I see that he is coming towards us. "Be cool. I got it."

"Afternoon ladies." The officer says to us once he reaches us.

"Um, hello officer." I stutter out and get a look from Ashley.

"Hi officer. How are you this fine afternoon?" Ashley asks calmly. Why do I get the feeling she's had run-ins with the cops before?

"I'm doing mighty fine myself." The officer says adjusting his belt. 'Mighty Fine?' I mouth to my girlfriend as he starts to walk around her car looking inside. "What are you two girls doing here, shouldn't you be in school or something?" He asks as he reaches the back of her car, checking out the plates.

"Well you see officer, we're from LA and there's no school today so my friend and I decided we would take a day trip and just see where we end up." Ashley tells the officer who nods.

"You're a pretty long way from Los Angeles." The officer states the obvious as he steps back in front of us.

"Yes sir. We were just stopping to go to the bathroom before we headed back." Ashley says with a smile.

The officer takes another look at Ashley and I before saying, "Alright, well you girls be careful. Get home safely." He adds then retreats back to his car.

I let out a big before of air then say, "That was a close one." Ashley turns her head from the cop to look at me.

"No it wasn't. That cop had no idea what was going on. You're the one that almost gave us a way, scaredy-pants." She says in a mocking tone as she opens the driver side door and gets in. I run around to the passenger side and get in, tossing the phones I just purchased on the floor in front of me.

"I was not scared. I don't know what you're talking about." I say crossing my arms over my chest.

She scoffs and smiles at me, "Spence, if you wanna play dumb...be my guest. We both know how you truly felt." She says putting the key in the ignition and starting the car.

"Yeah." I let out a contrived laugh. "I was totally fine. I felt fine. I'm fine."

"Keep telling yourself that, Spencer. You know... if it helps you sleep at night." She giggles to herself as we pull out of the gas station.

"You know I hate you, right?" She nods and smiles as we pull into a McDonald's to get food.

"I know."

After getting some food we got back on the road.

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><p>"How much longer before we can call it a night?" I asks Ashley as I turn down the volume on the radio.<p>

"I don't know, maybe another hour or two." We've been driving none stop for about five hours since we left the gas station and I must admit, I'm sick of being in this car already. I've never been much of a road trip type of girl. I like to get where I'm going quick, fast, and in a hurry. Flying's my thing.

Ashley looks at her watch, "It's only five thirty, Spence. Can we at least go for another two hours?" She asks keeping her eyes trained on the road ahead.

"Fiiine." I whine and she looks at me and smiles.

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><p>"You make me feel like I'm living a teenage dream the way you turn me on, I can't sleep, let's run away and don't ever look back don't ever look back." I sing along to Katy Perry on the Radio. "I freaking love this song!" I yell a little bit louder than necessary, causing my girlfriend to giggle at me.<p>

"I can see that." She yells over the music.

"Imma get your heart racing in my skin tight jeans be your teenage dream tonight, let you put on your hands on me in my skin tight jeans be your teenage dream tonight." I say dancing to the music, while my girlfriend continues to laugh at me.

"Fuck!" Ashley yells out when there is a loud popping noise and the car swerves onto the side of the highway—into the emergency lane.

"What happened?" I ask, visibly shaken. That scared the crap out of me.

"I think we got a flat." Ashley says before getting out of the car. I watch her as she goes to the back of the car and bends down. "Yep, we got a flat alright." She yells over the sound of speeding cars. I get out of the car and join her down by the back tire on the drivers side.

"What are we gonna do, do you have a spare?" I asks and her eyes light up.

"Yeah, I think so." She says jumping up and opening the trunk. "Fuck!" She exclaims again.

"What is it?" I standing up.

"There's no spare in here. I'm guessing since we have Triple A my dad didn't think I needed one." She tells me slamming the trunk shut.

"Well can you call Triple A?" I ask as we both walk around to the passenger side.

She sighs, "If I call them, they'll probably call my dad and then our whole plan would be ruined." She says then opens the door and sits down.

"What are we gonna do then?" I ask her, doing the same. She looks at her watch and stands up looking back the way we just came from then in the direction we should be going.

"Come on." She says pulling me up, grabbing the bags from the backseat—handing me mine.

"What are we doing?"

"We're walking." She tells me, grabbing her iPod off the seat and hiding anything else valuable.

"Walking where, Ashley?" I ask looking around. We haven't passed a turn off in miles.

"There was a sign back there for a Greyhound station about two miles up ahead. We're gonna walk to it." She tells closing the door then hitting the door lock button on her key chain.

"Wait. We're just gonna leave the Porsche here?" I ask in a high pitch voice. She nods. "On the side of the highway... all alone?"

She laughs at me, "It'll be fine, Spencer. The cops won't let it sit there for long. That's why we need to be long gone before they get here."

"But, but, but, but..." I say looking back at the Porsche as she drags me away. I liked that car.

"The car will be fine, Spencer." Ashley tells me for the twentieth time. Since we started walking I can't seem to stop looking back, although I know the Porsche is long gone from view.

"Well, we shouldn't have just left it there." I tell her, pouting.

"You know." She stops and turns to me with a smile on her face. "I'm starting to think you love that car more than you loved me."

I fake insult, "How dare you assume that I love you." I joke and she playfully hits me in the arm.

"Spencer Carlin, you take that back right now."

"Okay okay." I say placing a sweet kiss on her lips. "I love you, Ashley Davies."

"That's more like it." She says as we start back walking.

"How much longer?" I feel like we've been walking forever but I know in actuality it's only been thirty two minutes. I know because I keep asking Ashley for the time every thirty or so seconds.

"It shouldn't be more than another ten minutes." I wouldn't advise doing this—walking on the side of the highway that is. Especially two hot chicks. If I had a dollar for every guy that blew his horn or pulled up and asked if we needed a ride I'd haaaaaave... about 17 dollars, but that's besides the point. The point is... wait what was my point again... look, I just don't advise you do. "There." Ashley says, pointing to a bus station in the distance.

"Holbrook Greyhound." I read the words on the building. "Where the hell is Holbrook?" I srucnch up my face. Never in my 18 years of living have I heard of a place called Holbrook. Honestly, I don't even know what state we're in.

"It's a small city in Arizona, Spence. Only about six thousand people. It was founded in about 1881 or 1882, when the railroad was built, and named to honor the first chief engineer of the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad." I stop and look at her. "What?" She asks furrowing her eyebrows.

"You're like a regular walking damn encyclopedia." I tell her seriously and she just laughs.

"I can't help it if I actually pay attention in school, Spencer." She says as we start back walking to the bus station.

"Right." I say simply. We reach the bus station about two minutes later.

"I'm gonna go see where the soonest bus that's leaving is going, be right back." Ashley tells me as I take a seat on the bench right when you walk inside the bus station. I nod and she heads off towards the ticket counters.

As I'm sitting I can't help but think of all the things that lead up to this point. Meeting Ashley, falling in love with her and having our love outed to the whole world by a person I thought was my good friend. I smile when I think of Aiden and Madison and how I'm glad that through all this they found each other. They both definitely deserve happiness. Then my smile disappears when I remember how I left things with my parents. How even though they always promised to be there for me, the time I needed them the most they turned their backs on me. I smile again remember how Glen reacted to the whole situation. How he said he loves me no matter what. I'm glad to have a big brother like him. My life got so complicated the moment Ashley stepped into it. But the funny thing is... I wouldn't have it any other way.

"The first bus that's leaving is going to New York." Ashley tells me snapping me from my inner thoughts.

"Then New York it is." I tell her with a smile.

"Well okay then. I'm gonna grab us something to eat from the food place, you can go ahead and head to the bus if you want. Here's your ticket." She hands me a bus ticket. "Want anything in particular?"

"No, whatever you get is fine." I tell her. She smiles and says a quick okay, then heads off to get us food. I make my way out to the bus, showing the driver my ticket then climbing onto the bus. I find Ashley and I two seats fairly close to the front of the bus. I put our bags in the overhead compartment and settle into the next by the window. As I look out at all the people driving by on the highway I can't help but think whether or not there's someone back in LA that is missing me, besides Madison. After about twenty minutes the bus driver climbs onto the bus and starts it up.

"Ugh that line was so long." Ashley says as she flops down next to me. "I got you two Nathan hog dogs." She says handing me a bag.

"Thank you." I tell her leaning over to give her a kiss.

"Everything okay?" She asks pulling back from the kiss.

"Yeah, everything's fine." I tell her.

"Are you sure? Cause if you're having second thoughts we could just-"

"I promise I'm fine, Ashley." I assure her with a smile.

"Okay good." She returns the smile.

"So, have you ever been to New York?" She asks taking a bite of her hamburger.

"Nope, not that I can recall." I tell her biting my hot dog.

"It's amazing. I visited there a few summers ago. But I guess since it's almost winter it's gonna be cold."

"I didn't pack any winter clothes." I say putting my hotdog down.

"I didn't either." She says with a shrug. "I guess we'll be going shopping then. Where's my bag?" She asks looking around us.

"I put it up-" Before I could finish hands me her hamburger and jumps up grabbing her bag out of the overhead compartment.

"You can't just be putting this thing anywhere, Spence." She says hushed. "Valuables inside." She says widening her eyes.

"Oh yeah. I forgot. I'm sorry." I tell her and she waves me off.

"It's okay baby. I forgive you." She leans in and kisses me as the bus driver pulls off. "You should finish that up and get some sleep. We have a long ride to New York." She says and I nod. I look out the window one last time as I take another bite from my hotdog.

Goodbye west coast, Hello New York...

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><p><em>Yaaaay... Sequel anyone?<em>


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